Blue Lightning and the Bear
by Blue Paladin
Summary: Two shadows from the past rise up to confront the New State Army. First they must dispatch the vampire who seeks to make life dance to his whims. But who will aid them against the Dark Knight of Chaos?
1. Chapter 1 A Spark of Red

Chapter 1- A Spark of Red 

_In Solis 460, Swordsdei, the 25th of Marxa:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I don't know why I even write this thing. It's not as if I'm a good writer, nor do I ever hope to publish any memoirs. Heck, sometimes I wonder if I'm going to live long enough to worry about memoirs. Do I even want to live so long? I could always put down my sword and stop. And do what? I don't have any other skills and besides, I made a promise on my sword so-_

_Well, this is depressing, but I guess that's just my mood. The war is winding down, and I'm thinking about the future again. It's horrible to consider, but I'm actually happier during battle, when the future doesn't press so close. So, if thinking about the future depresses me, should I not think at all? Ha! I can hear Viktor through the floorboards even now; he's down there working on his fifth or sixth drunken ballad without a care in the world._

_How I envy him._

_But I am not Viktor. I can't brush things aside so easily. No, that's unfair. He's gone through more than any person should in one lifetime, and if he's figured out how best to numb himself from it, I shouldn't complain._

_Besides-_

And then his quill snapped. With a sigh, Flik set it aside and stared down into the scrawl he called his diary. _Besides, I will just end up following him into a new adventure, probably._ Flik was in his room, on the second floor of the fort, a modest structure of planking and logs. The room was not large: a simple bed in one corner, a small table and chair, and a bookcase with a few books in it. A fire burned in a small hearth at the back wall, and there was a lamp on the table, supplying a rather pitiful amount of light. Now that he had mentally finished the sentence, he closed the diary and set it among the books. Then he walked over to the window.

He studied his reflection in the pale light as it appeared out of the shroud of night. His eyes appeared first; they were startlingly blue, but blazed when he was angered. He was staring at those reflected eyes- as they stared right back- when he suddenly blinked. A fleeting spectre broke the dark monotony; a spark of red, far off in the distance, almost totally obscured by the distant forest and mountains. It winked away, long enough that Flik almost thought he had only imagined it, but then it was back. He tried to locate it in his mind. It was north, well north, perhaps even beyond Toto Village.

Flik stood there for many moments silent, almost not breathing. Everything was silent- well, save for the fact that emanating out of the floorboards was the muffled sound of the men now running chorus for Viktor as he continued with his singing. Flik ignored this, was not even aware of it, as he considered an idea, spinning it over and over in his mind. He could not put that sudden flame out of his head, though his bed -and with it sleep- were tantalizingly close. Suddenly, his whole body went rigid; a decision had been made!

Stepping back to the table, he picked up his blue bandanna, tying it around his slightly disordered, dirty blond hair. Next he pulled on the similarly colored cape that was hanging off the chair. That cape was well-worn, full of patches and mended rents, but Flik ignored them, letting the garment drape back over his yellow shirt, blue leather armor, and black pants. He reached down to pat the sheathed sword at his hip, seeking reassurance in its presence. That he wore always, save when he slept, and even then it was always within arm's reach. Finally, he swept up the lamp in one arm, pulled the door open, and stepped from the room.

The corridor outside was dark, save for two shafts of light streaming up from stairs at either end. Shadows of people danced eagerly in that light. The singing was louder out here, but Flik still ignored it. Instead he turned down the hall and walked towards the planning room, between the two bedrooms- his and Viktor's- that shared the upper level. He opened the door to the planning room and strode in.

This room was larger than either of the two adjacent bedrooms. In the far right corner was a cabinet stuffed full of important documents: payment rolls, procurement forms, readiness reports- basically all the paperwork necessary to run a small mercenary operation. On the back wall was a large window, through which the night sky poured. A table and desk stood close to each other in the center of the room.

It was towards this table that Flik now walked. A parchment map had been spread over it, showing the region of Muse east of Lake Dunan, the North Sparrow Pass, and the Kyaro Province of Highland. Placed on the map were little lead figurines representing the various units deployed in the region. Carefully, Flik brought the lamp close so that he could examine the units and written notes that had been placed at each critical location.

He stared at the map for a long moment.

Below, Viktor was in fine form, his deep baritone rattling the glass of the windows.

Flik blinked, and realized that he didn't recognize any of the troop positions on the map. Everything was entirely wrong. After a moment, he saw that the troops on the map had been rearranged to represent an entirely fictitious invasion of the Kyaro Province, spearheaded by none other than fine men of this mercenary fort. Gently, Flik reached out and picked up one of the little lead men as he pondered the question; who could've done such a thing?

Below, Viktor's singing was cut off suddenly by the sound of a chair collapsing and a large man hitting the floor unexpectedly.

Anger coursed through Flik suddenly, raging fire burning in his veins, reflected eyes glittering fiercely in the window, a sharp pain blossoming in his right hand.

A sharp pain blossoming in his right hand?

Flik looked down at that hand, opening to reveal the crushed remains of the figurine he had so carefully grabbed a moment ago. In that moment, his anger departed, replaced only by a bitter disgust. He placed the remains back down onto the map and took only a moment in finding the place he was looking for- Tenzan Pass. Then, puffing annoyance out through his mouth, Flik turned and stalked from the room. Behind, the little crushed figurine representing the Highland Unicorn Brigade stood at attention, patiently waiting for orders that would never come.

Stepping down the stairs, Flik found his senses coming under immediate assault. Every candle, lantern, and fireplace appeared to be lit, filling the entirety of the ground level with a bright, smoky light. It was also sickly hot, sweat springing to his forehead almost instantly. The noise was oppressive, voices babbling incoherently into a pause in the singing. Mercenary soldiers were jammed into the area, perhaps a hundred or more in the mess hall and entranceway, the two areas together not much bigger than the three rooms upstairs. Flik had a sudden longing to just rub his temples and go right back upstairs to bed.

No, he must persevere! Scanning the crowd, he caught sight of two women, Leona and Barbara, standing behind the counter of the bar, talking to one another and looking generally pleased. Besides Viktor and Flik, they were probably the two most important people in the whole fort. Leona, in charge of the food and drinks, was tall and slender, with dark eyes that were always watching everything, like a bird of prey. Barbara, on the other hand, was shorter and large. Her domain was the storeroom, and keeping on her good side was essential for getting anything done.

Flik waved, trying to get their attention; they did not seem to notice him. Boldly, Flik stepped forward into the crowd, generously throwing elbows to clear the way as he shoved towards the two women. Leaving a train of curses and upended drinks in his wake, Flik finally managed to force his way to the bar.

"Hello there, Flik," Leona said cheerfully as he approached. Her dark hair was bound up with a red flower clip, and she was wearing a long red kimono that was slit on the right side up almost to her hip. This little party seemed to be making her very happy, but then she was almost certainly charging for the drinks, despite her position in the mercenary force. She suddenly swiveled, pulling up another tray of drinks. The little blue gems dangling from her ears and the long white scarf around her neck mimicked her motion. After setting out the tray, she took a puff from her long pencil pipe, and indolently blew a smoke cloud at Flik.

"Sir," Barbara said, in a voice that was suddenly all formality, though she had a moment ago been happily chatting with Leona. She was wearing an orange blouse that hung all the way down to her knees, with a square cut neck that showed just the top of her décolletage. She was also wearing a green skirt that fell below the knees, and a yellow and brown apron around her waist. Her brown and red-tinted hair was done up in a long braid and bound with a green bandana on her head.

They were both Viktor's friends. Barbara scowled at Flik, while Leona pulled up a used mug and started wiping it down.

"Can I offer you a drink?" Leona asked, pleasantly.

"No thank you," Flik began, feeling suddenly out of sorts, but then continued with, "where is Viktor?"

In answer to that question, a knot of men in the back of the room suddenly broke up and Viktor appeared, sitting in a chair that was being hefted up by a group of ten or so men. Not that they were hefting it very well, for the chair swayed back and forth and threatened to deposit its bulky occupant into the crowd. Not that said bulky occupant seemed to notice the swaying. Actually, bulky was the wrong word; Viktor was huge. He was so wide, in fact, that it tended to disguise the fact that he was nearly as tall as Flik, and all, or at least most, of that bulk was muscle, especially his two, powerful arms. He was showing no ill effects from his previous tumble and instead had just started a rather ribald song about a king and a dancing girl.

Singing, he began to wave his huge arms around to keep the tempo. Those arms were shown off to great effect by his sleeveless yellow tunic, which he habitually wore with the collar turned up. Over the tunic he wore a leather chest guard and the leather strap for his hilt, which was bouncing in time to the beat on his back. He also wore a pair of black pants with a simple leather belt and on his feet he wore short leather boots. His face was framed by a mane of unruly black hair that fell to his neck in the back and close to the eyes on the front.

It was his face, though, that made people love him. He was expressive, smiling broadly when happy or nearly breaking down when sad. His brown eyes were almost always sparkling with happiness, though at the moment they seemed a little clouded with drunkenness.

"Viktor. Viktor!" Flik shouted, waving to try and get his attention.

Incredibly enough, Viktor heard, or at least he heard Flik's voice. He waved merrily back and broke off singing long enough to shout, "I thought you were asleep, but hey, let's have a party! Leona, get him sumthin' to drink!"

Leona, dutifully enough, pressed a mug full of "sumthin'" into Flik's hand. He looked momentarily at the mug full of yellowish liquid and then banged it down onto the counter, slopping the contents onto the wood and the brown leather of his gloves.

"Viktor, I need to talk to you." Flik shouted towards his friend and co-commander. Viktor, though, had taken up his song again and had reached the point where the dancing girl had just begun to undress a thoroughly drunk king, gold and jewels first.

Flik listened for a moment and then did the only reasonable thing remaining. He extended his right hand and -feeling the power coursing through the rune embedded there- cast a lightning spell into the morass. Oh, not a high powered lightening spell, just enough to catch everyone's attention. As the spark of electricity jumped from person to person, the party came to a sudden and shocking conclusion. Especially when Viktor was pitched out of his chair and, in the effort to catch himself, tossed his mug of beer against one of the wooden support pillars, where it exploded in a shower of golden shards. For a moment, silence reigned supreme.

Flik did not waste that moment. Blue cape trailing behind him, he stepped forward towards one of the chair holders, Rossgard, the senior sergeant in charge of the horses.

"Rossgard, wake up!" Flik shouted, waving his hand in front of Rossgard's face in an effort to catch the drunk- and now electrocuted- man's attention. When, after a moment, Flik was satisfied that he had at least partial comprehension out of this man, he continued with, "Saddle up the horses, we're doing a night patrol."

"Night patrol?" slurred Rossgard, and then he stumbled off to attempt to do his duty. It didn't help that he then smashed face first into the same pillar that Viktor's mug had crashed into a moment ago.

"Yo, Flik, what's going on?" Viktor rumbled, as he pulled himself unsteadily into a standing position.

Flik knew that he had only this one chance to keep Viktor off his guard, so he walked over and replied, "I'm taking the scouts out on a night patrol. I think they could use the exercise."

The men, particularly the scouts in question, now looked from Flik to Viktor, awaiting his response. Though they were known as "Viktor's Mercenaries", in reality the two of them split duties and were co-commanders. Unfortunately, this sometimes led to situations where the men could get one commander to countermand the orders of the other. It was not unlike a situation where children know to go to one parent to get what they want.

Of course, Flik understood this as well. "You're invited along, too, if you want, Viktor. Though, if you think you're getting too flabby to keep up, I'd understand." As if to underscore this point, Flik vigorously jabbed Viktor in the gut. It was akin to jabbing a brick wall, but Flik managed not to grimace. It also worked brilliantly.

"You think I'm getting flabby?" Viktor roared, in a voice that, except for the fact that Flik knew Viktor well enough, threatened menace. "Just you wait, Flik. I'll ride you, and your horse, and my horse as well, into the ground just to keep up with you."

"Good for you." Flik smiled, and then turned to the mass of men milling around in the room. "Form lines!" he commanded.

After some confusion, the men managed to form a couple of ragged lines. Viktor, after brushing himself off, lounged against a pillar, oblivious to the fact that the beer splattered on it had now run down and was staining his tunic, and watched.

"I need to pick someone to leave in charge while we're away and- what is this?" Flik asked, as he had begun his inspection of the assembled men. He was standing in front of a little dark haired boy, who couldn't have been more than ten or so years old, who was dressed in a kid sized uniform.

"My name is Sen." he piped in a little kid's voice.

"Viktor," Flik despaired, "you didn't hire this kid on, did you?"

"Absolutely." Viktor grinned. "He's my number one spy man."

"That's right." Sen chimed in.

"We're not running an orphanage, Viktor. You shouldn't be endangering this child with you're silly schemes."

"My schemes are not silly." Viktor protested, gesturing with his hands as if to emphasize the point.

"I'm not gonna let any Highland soldiers catch me." Sen added. "I'm much too fast for them anyway."

"Where are your parents, Sen?" Flik asked gently. "Aren't they worried about you?"

Momentarily, the little boy looked as if he were going to break into tears, but then, with a little boy's courage, he smiled and said, "Don't have no parents. Highland killed them last year. Besides, Miss Leona and Miss Barbara look after me." Flik looked up and saw the two women in question smiling at him.

"Fine," Flik conceded, "he stays." Cheering broke out throughout the room at this ruling. "But, I will want to hear and approve of any missions that he undertakes. Understand, Viktor?"

"No problem." Viktor smiled.

"Yay! Thank you, sir!" Sen cried happily, and rushed forward to hug Flik's stomach.

After disengaging himself from Sen, Flik moved on to the next person in line.

"No, Viktor…absolutely not!" He said, after seeing said worthy.

"Oh come on, Flik," Viktor pleaded. "Every mercenary squad needs one."

"Absolutely!" added the high-pitched voice of the person in question. Then he barked emphatically.

The person in question was a kobold. He was short of stature, coming up only to Flik's chest, with brown fur and a white muzzle and a little tuft of white fur at the top of his head, between his upturned ears. He was wearing a collared green shirt with leather boards for rank ensignia and leather cuffs at the ends of the sleeves. He was also wearing a pair of green shorts, modified so that his tail, brown fading to white at the tip, was free.

"I'm Gengen, sir." He saluted enthusiastically, managing to click together the heels of his black and white shoes. "Ready to ride." Though he probably couldn't mount a horse, let alone ride one.

Flik tried his best not to groan, especially after noting the kobold's orange socks. "Viktor." Flik said, ignoring Gengen. "Everybody knows that kobolds work best in kobold only units. Kobolds don't train to work with human units."

"No problem, sir." Gengen replied. "Gengen has studied humans extensively and can train to human tactics with no problems."

Viktor shrugged expressively.

"Fine, you can stay, too." He turned to Viktor. "However, one of these days I'm going to test one of your new recruits, got that."

Viktor shrugged again, and smiled.

Suddenly, Flik did not have the patience to run down the entire line and inspect every soldier. Instead, he turned to Leona and said, "You are in charge while we are away."

"Me?" Leona asked, almost laughing.

"Yes, you. I figure the men will probably listen to you more than anyone else in this fort. Just don't let them burn it down, and we'll be back in a day, or possibly two."

Then, without waiting to see if anyone would follow him, Flik swept about and walked towards the doors.

The ride started slowly. It took nearly half an hour to find enough men sober enough to make up the thirty that would accompany Viktor and Flik. It turned out that sober enough was still not terribly sober. In the first forty minutes of the ride, at least half the men leaned over the side of their horses to puke loudly. One man fell right out of his saddle and broke his arm. His ride, plus that of two escorts to see him back to the fort, was over very quickly.

They rode northeast, through the gap in the forest, towards the village of Ryube and the East Road. At least it was a bright night, with the Scarlet Moon near full and the Blue Moon waning gibbous. It was also chilly, as befitted an early spring night, and this helped clear the clouded heads of the riders.

They traveled carefully until they reached Ryube and the East Road, but then Flik increased the pace as the path became more regular. They passed the sleeping village on their right, nestled between two forested ridges. They continued this way for hours, riding north with the ridges of the Aramayan Range on the right and the sparsely forested plains of East Muse of the left. Those plains were lightly inhabited, and the riders passed only a few scattered homesteads as they rode on.

Four hours later and now north of the entrance to North Sparrow Pass, as the Blue Moon was setting, they paused to change to the remounts.

"You alright there?" Flik asked, as he noted Viktor doubled over and rubbing his thighs.

"Just fine," he gritted back. "Nothing better than a four hour trot to work out the kinks."

"Good, because I intend to press harder over the next four hours."

Viktor clenched his teeth, and then tried to smile broadly.

True to his word, Flik did press harder over the next four hours. The pace began to tell, as men and horses pulled out of the formation, and the line became spread out and ragged. Viktor, true to his word, ran his horse hard in an attempt to keep up with Flik. At one point, Flik looked back, watching Viktor's travails. Viktor was not a good rider, and they did not really have any horse large enough to properly handle his bulk. Still, what he lacked in skill, he made up for in sheer willpower. He would keep going until the horse literally collapsed under him, and then he might be able to coax a few steps more out of the horse. Viktor, noting Flik's gaze, smiled even more broadly and let out a hearty cheer. The other men in the line took it up for good measure.

Flik looked away and smiled. He loved riding, for it took him back to his youth in the Warrior's Village. The feel of the horse's muscles working in tandem with his own, and the breeze on his face were things that had been trained into him as a youth. He had been thinking about the Warrior's Village recently, wondering if he ought to go back and be judged worthy. But no, then they would want him to marry, and that would be betraying the one he still loved.

The road turned towards the west and the riders could now gaze at the Scarlet Moon as it finished it's nightly journey. In the east, the sky began to fill with pale light, anticipating the dawn. The chill in the air was now very sharp, and the horses' breaths came in smoky bursts. Cresting a little ridge, Flik looked down on the Village of Toto in the distance, sitting on the right bank of the River Dorthai. Dunan Lake, further to the south, was still hidden in the mists of early morning.

Flik had heard it said, usually when people thought he wasn't listening, that people from the Warrior's Village had an instinctual need to find battles, that they could literally smell war on the wind. Whether or not this was true, Flik certainly thought he smelled something as the wind picked up out of the north.

He paused at the top of this ridge to gather in his riders, or as many as were still with him. Their little force was now down to sixteen riders, and they didn't have enough remounts for everyone. The loss of the men didn't concern Flik, they would either return to the fort or not get paid, but the loss of horses was distressing. He could only hope that the straggling men were also keeping track of the extra horses.

"So…uh…what now?" Viktor asked between deep breaths.

"We ride along this bank of the river, north of Toto." Flik replied, gesturing with a sweep of his arm. The Scarlet Moon was just slipping below the distant horizon.

"That's a little out of our normal patrol area, don't you think?"

"And?"

Viktor put up his hands defensively. "Hey, hey, I'm just saying that it takes us pretty close to Highland territory. I'm not one to chicken out from a fight, but I'd like to know what you're taking us into. Besides, Flik, you've got that look in your eyes."

"What look?" Flik asked, turning to face his friend.

"Like you're expecting trouble…like you're itching for a fight. Have you been thinking about Odessa recently?"

"I most certainly have not," Flik lied and then wheeled his horse around and started down the hill. Instinctively, his hand sought out his sword.

_Only about every day._


	2. Chapter 2 Gift of the River

Chapter 2- Gift of the River 

Pausing in the midst of a scramble up a moderately wooded slope, Flik regarded an ant scrambling across the index finger of his right glove. The irony was not lost on him.

"Flik? Yo, Flik, you up there somewhere?" Viktor shouted, from somewhere down the slope. The noise, however, was partially muted by the incessant babbling and roaring of the River Dorthai, which up in these hills passed through a series of rapids and falls. Technically, Flik could pretend not to hear Viktor, and pass a moment in blessed solitude.

The sun was climbing overhead towards noon, easily visible through branches that were just beginning to bud. There were trees and brambles all about, making the ill-defined game trail that they were on hard going. It was much too hard going for the horses, and so the eight most exhausted men had been left behind to rest and water them. Ahead there was a stand of pine trees, green needles a stark contrast to the rest of the forest. The wind was from that direction, too, giving the air the scent of pine and water from the river. And the scent of something else…which drove Flik onward.

Alas, the moment came to a sudden end when Viktor crashed through the undergrowth and flopped onto the turf a few feet down the slope. He lay there for a few seconds, gathering his breath, and then propped his head up and said, "So, Flik…we getting any closer to where we're supposed to be going?"

"I'm not really sure, myself." Flik conceded. Below, the remaining eight mercenaries were staggering into view. Seeing their two commanders flopped down on the ground gave them excuse enough to do the same.

"Think maybe it's about time to call it quits and go home?" Viktor suggested. "We're not packing enough food for an extended trip." His stomach gurgled loudly, adding its two potch to the argument. The men looked up hopefully.

Flik looked away, back towards the pines, and pondered the request. When he had begun this trip he had had some doubts, certainly, but with each step closer, he was more certain that there was something worthwhile- no, important- to be discovered up here. Now, if only he could convince his men of this fact, without sounding like a madman.

"How about we climb up to those trees," Flik gestured at the pines, "and walk down to the river and see what there is to see."

Flik watched as Viktor considered the distances, trying to determine if it would be more of an effort to climb up there, or to try to argue Flik out of climbing up there. After a few moments, Viktor nodded his assent to the ascent. The men groaned, but continued their scramble.

About ten minutes later, the group was panting in the shade of the pine trees, on a stretch of level ground. Flik though, was looking towards the river, down a slight slope, about a hundred yards away. Without waiting to see if anyone would follow, he started out from under the trees towards the river. Approaching the water, the vegetation grew sparse, and bare rock appeared through the topsoil. At the bank, the ground was nothing but rock, and slippery too. The river itself flowed vigorously, broken into little rapids and whirlpools by rocks jutting out of the flow. It was about fifty or sixty feet wide at this point, and perhaps seven or eight deep at the deepest point. The far bank was much higher up and covered with trees that leaned out over the river, giving the impression that the mountain was about to collapse directly into the water.

For a moment, Flik was too absorbed in the scene to notice, but then his eyes caught a flash of color in the water, disappearing behind the swell of a rapid. He picked it up again as it reappeared on the other side, resolving itself into the figures of two teenage boys, holding onto each other, but not responding well in the water.

"Viktor! Viktor, get down here!" Flik cried, and splashed into the water. At the second step, he nearly collapsed as icy pain raced up his legs. Still he staggered forward, for the two boys were approaching rapidly, and he'd only have one chance at this. The current was terribly strong as he waded further in, and the river bottom extremely slippery. From behind, he could finally hear the sounds of Viktor and the others crashing through the woods to get to him.

Then he misstepped and slipped off his feet, plunging below the surface of the water. Bitterly cold water roared in his ears, and for a moment, Flik wondered if that was the last thing that he would ever hear. A hard, painful jolt in the back brought him to his senses, and he found himself back first to a rock, feet once again securely resting on the bottom. Still, he was numbed and he had to struggle a moment to remember why he was even here, assaulted by gallon upon gallon of rushing river.

He caught sight of the two boys once again, as they slammed against a rock in the rapids, the impact separating them, one in the main flow of the river, but the other caught in a side eddy, flowing towards the bank. This was the one that Flik swam towards, a figure in red on the water. In the back of his mind, he resolved to thank the Warrior's Village for all the early morning swimming lessons.

Flik reached the boy and tried pulling him towards the shore, but it was rough going. The boy was a deadweight, and Flik was not in good shape either, teeth chattering with every rasping breath he tried to take. He almost didn't realize it when Viktor suddenly grabbed both him and the boy.

"Steady now," Viktor chided, when Flik feebly tried to brush him away. "Now pull!" he shouted to the men on shore. Flik's consciousness was unsteady, but he realized that the Viktor and the others had jury-rigged a lifeline out of a length of rope, which was now securely tied around Viktor's waist, and they were being pulled back to the bank.

Flik's feet and arms were like ice cubes as Viktor pulled both him and the boy up out of the reach of the waters, but as soon as Viktor's grasp loosened, Flik began to stagger away as fast as he could.

"Wait! Where you going?" Viktor shouted after him.

"Another-" Flik chattered to no one in particular, mostly to keep his focus. He stumbled downstream and tumbled down a slope, sprawling into a bramble.

"You two," Viktor's orders floated through the air, "get after him. Get him back here."

None of his limbs seemed to want to work correctly, but Flik managed to disengage himself from the bush mostly by main force and continued along the riverbank at an ungainly lope. His eyes weren't working well; everything seemed to come at him out of a haze of gray. All of his clothes were soaked, dragging him downward, pulling him towards the earth. Down…down-

"Wait commander, wait!"

Suddenly strong hands gripped him, holding him up, pain wrenching at his consciousness where their warm skin touched him. His heart was working with great, slow throbs, trying to push blood through his system. He suddenly felt unbearably weary.

Then he felt the sun, full on his face, and he could see again. He was perched on the edge of a cliff face; a thirty foot drop into the upturned branches of the trees below. The river roared down series of falls, dropping down towards the plain.

Lifting up his eyes, Flik looked over the plains at noontide. The sun was riding high in a perfectly clear sky, and the river was a gentle stream of light down on the plains. Beyond, he could see the greater waters of Lake Dunan, away to the south and west, disappearing beyond the horizon. He thought he could even make out tiny boats plying the surface of the lake.

Likewise, he could look out and see the plains, little belts of forest breaking up the vast grasslands. The East Road was just a faint smudge on the panorama. To the east and north, the ridges built up into taller mountains, some few even glistening with the last of the snows on their flanks.

There was no hope of pursuing the other boy over those falls.

A gentle breeze came up, like a thousand needles pricking Flik at every piece of exposed skin, and he sank down to the earth in the grasp of his two soldiers.

"Commander, you okay?" one of them asked nervously.

"Thank you for coming after me," Flik replied.

"Just doing our job." the other answered, a touch of professional pride in his voice.

Flik basked in the sunlight for a long moment of painful bliss, but hearing Viktor's voice carrying on the wind spurred him back to action. He did want to see to the boy that he had rescued. Slowly then, with the assistance of his two minders, Flik managed to work his way back to a standing position. Carefully he put one foot in front of the other, and when he found that he didn't collapse, started back towards the others.

With each passing step, Flik felt more strength returning to his limbs. Besides, Viktor seemed angry, or at least loud, and he didn't want the kid roughed up, or scared witless. In fact, Viktor seemed to be threatening to cut the kid's tongue off if the kid didn't speak the truth. Flik decided to pick up the pace.

"Are you having fun picking on that poor kid, Viktor?" Flik asked, as he stepped back into the clearing. Viktor was standing in front of the kid, with a soldier on each side. Flik edged closer to look at this gift of the river.

Viktor mock-frowned. "Picking on him? I wouldn't do that. I'm one of the good guys, remember?"

The kid in question was thoroughly soaked and his color was poor, though from the cold or Viktor's questioning, it was hard to say. He had short, brown hair and big, brown expressive eyes. He was wearing a long red tunic, short black pants, a beige bandana tied around his neck, and a circlet. He was standing in a little pool of water, which was being continuously fed from his dripping clothes. Flik couldn't place his expression, as the kid glanced briefly over at him. It wasn't fear, or relief, but perhaps simply acknowledgement of his new situation.

"This is Riou," Viktor said, proudly. "He's a Highland soldier in the Unicorn Brigade."

Flik nodded. The Unicorn Brigade was a youth squad, made up of sixteen and seventeen year old boys. It was mostly a training formation, not a fighting unit, and usually only did garrison work away from the main lines. Thinking back to the map, though, he remembered that they had been stationed recently in the Tenzan Pass, north of here, back up the river.

"He says that his unit was attacked by the State Army, or something like that," Viktor continued. Flik looked back at Riou; he looked pretty out of it.

"What happened to the other one?" Viktor asked.

"I'm sorry, I lost him in the river."

Viktor shook his head. "Poor guy. I hope he makes it."

Again, Riou took the news with a curious lack of emotion, simply nodding that he had, in fact, heard. Flik found this to be unsettling, almost intimidating. It must be the fact that he is close to hypothermic, Flik decided. That had to be it.

Viktor, of course, was intimidated by nothing. Slapping Riou heartily on the back, he laughed and said, "Well, it looks like you'll be my personal guest for a while. Not that the accommodations are all that great. Don't worry, though, we're not going to mistreat you. After all, we're the good guys."

The ride back was at a much more sedate pace than the ride out. About half the stragglers had caught up with the group at the bottom of the ridge, and they had brought with them many of the extra horses. Riou was given an extra mercenary outfit, complete with shorts, that was just a touch too big for him, though it was dry. His hands and legs were kept free for the ride, but a rope was fastened about his neck, such that any escape attempt would result only in his own humiliating death.

One rider was dispatched ahead to notify the fort, and the rest followed on at a walking pace. Viktor was in high spirits, pleased that the journey had netted something. Flik, though, couldn't help but wonder what this capture foretold. Riou, naturally enough, didn't say a word. He rode like a novice, at least at the start, but the horse did not give him a bit of trouble. After an hour or two of silently watching the others, especially Flik, he managed to ride with a better position than nearly half of the scouts and far better than Viktor. Flik noted this with concern, for it spoke to a cunning cleverness that was not readily apparent at first glance. He wondered if they had been duped into "capturing" some sort of Highland elite, who would now wreck havoc within Jowston.

That night, after the cooking was done, the horses cleaned and tethered, and Riou was secured by tying his hands and feet, Flik and Viktor walked out from the camp a ways. Climbing a hill, Flik sat down and looked up at the night sky. The Scarlet Moon was full, rising above the Aramayan Ridge in the east. The Blue Moon was still waning, dancing in and out of some high clouds that were building out of the west. This night was warmer than the last, the winds blowing out of the southwest, and the night insects and frogs were chorusing.

"So, any particular reason why you called me out here?" Viktor asked, when his patience had finally worn thin.

Flik sighed. "What do you think of his story about a State attack on his unit?"

"It's nonsense." Viktor replied. "There's no State unit of any size within a hundred miles of Tenzan Pass."

"Sure, but what do you think it means?"

"He's delusional, or maybe they set up their camp in the middle of a flash flood, or maybe he's a deserter for all I know."

Flik shook his head, looking up at Viktor. "He doesn't look like a deserter and they would have a captain with them to make sure they didn't do anything as stupid as setting up their camp in a place that flash floods."

Viktor stamped his feet restlessly. "Fine, but what are you getting at, Flik? So we pick up one kid out of the river who believes that a State unit destroyed his friends. You think the whole war will start up again just over that?"

"It might." Flik replied. Viktor sucked in a breath and crossed his arms. "The boy believes his unit was destroyed. What if it was?"

"It wouldn't happen," Viktor growled, a little sulkily. "Anabelle wouldn't do something like that."

"It doesn't have to be her," Flik answered, with a wave of one hand. "There are plenty of people on both sides who might want the war restarted."

"Are you suggesting that Highland slaughtered the Unicorn Brigade?" Viktor asked, incredulously.

"Many things are possible, including that. We need to be ready, Viktor. I'm going to send a letter to Muse, detailing this incident and requesting more money. We also need to step up our recruiting, rehire some of our old soldiers, and keep the ones that we have ready."

Viktor nodded, and then looked off into the distance. "You know," he said, after a moment had passed, "I was kind of hoping that this war was going to end soon. I don't like it when my homeland has to fight."

"I know." Flik said quietly.

The conversation tailed off then, but neither man left the hilltop. Flik kept his eyes down, toying with a piece of grass. Finally he asked, "What do you think of our prisoner?"

"Riou," Viktor laughed, "he's a string bean. His arms are like cooked pasta."

"Viktor," Flik laughed in reply. "To you, everyone's arms are like cooked pasta."

Viktor's laughter shook the night.

They returned to the fort late in the afternoon of the next day. By that time, the wind had shifted round to the west-northwest and built up to a steady breeze. Storm clouds, fed by moisture off the lake, were rolling across the sky, threatening rain. Even so, there was quite a crowd waiting for their return. Or perhaps, for the arrival of the prisoner. Life at the fort was more or less the same dull routine, so anything to break the monotony was welcome.

Still, it was a bit much, with soldiers lining the road and sitting in the trees and Gengen barking merrily and even Leona and Barbara out to see what all the commotion was about. Riou bore the stares and gawking with remarkable dignity, walking confidently, almost haughtily, even if his hands were bound behind him. Viktor did not bear the celebration well, yelling at the slackers to get back to training and for everyone else to clear out.

Leona and Barbara, of course, did not clear out. As Flik approached with Riou, Leona stepped down the stairs and asked, with an icy look, "Surely you're not planning of making a prisoner out of a kid?"

"He's a soldier, Leona, out of the Unicorn Brigade," Flik said, maybe just a touch defensively. "Besides, we're not going to mistreat him; he'll have regular meals and a place to sleep." This did not seem to mollify the two women, who frowned even more deeply. Luckily, Flik knew exactly how to duck their anger. "After all, he's Viktor's "special guest", so he'll probably eat better than the men."

Viktor, having returned from chasing the men back to work, wiped his brow and asked, "You talking about me?"

Leona sniffed and turned about, walking back into the fort.

Barbara scowled and said, "You'd better take good care of that kid, Viktor, or I'll knock your block off." Then she, too, went back inside.

Viktor scratched his head and asked, "They mad or something?"

It was all Flik could do not to break out laughing. Even Riou seemed to be smothering a smile.

He was not smiling at all when Viktor escorted him into his new sleeping quarters, also known as the cell where they normally locked the drunken rowdies. Not that there were any drunken rowdies in here now, Flik mused, and then wondered where they would put the rowdies in the future.

Viktor, meanwhile, was saying, "Sorry about the sleeping arrangements, kid, but we're a little short on space now. Anyway, it looks like you'll be staying with us for now, so get used to it."

The first droplets of rain had just begun to fall when they closed the cell door on Riou's big, expressive eyes.


	3. Chapter 3 Of Rope, Flints, and Oil

Chapter 3- Of Rope, Flints, and Oil 

_In Solis 460, Earthsdei, the 28th of Marxa:_

_Dear Diary,_

_It's raining, and I'm miserable, though not because of the rain. I feel that war is looming again. We picked up a prisoner from the Highland Unicorn Brigade, who says that his unit was attacked by the State Army. Well, that can't be right, because there are no State units anywhere in the vicinity. Still, if the unit was destroyed, Highland could use that as an excuse to break the cease-fire agreement. I've got men listening to rumor mill, so we'll see._

_Viktor, of course, didn't want to go out in the rain this morning. Sometimes he's just like a big baby. But we need to get the training up. Also, I've got to remember to send the recruiters around. I wonder if Viktor would like that job?_

_Riou, he's our prisoner, bothers me, though. He hardly ever speaks, so I think Viktor underestimates him, but I think he's cunning, and he's definitely got an indomitable spirit. He reminds me a little of Tir McDohl, a person that I have not thought about in a while._

_Meanwhile, young Tuta, doctor Huan's pupil, is staying with us for a few days, to look over our sick cases. And I have a letter to send to Muse, so I guess I'd better write it._

Flik shook his head, and set his diary aside. A steady rain was beating on his window, falling out of a gray sky. The fort was quiet, or at least as quiet as a place with several hundred men in it can be. In the distance, he could hear Viktor drilling the men, his loud voice calling out errors in the line. Turning from that, Flik looked around for some paper. There was none in his room. He walked out into the hall and down to the planning room.

Inside, Edrick, the mercenary fort's accountant, was crunching numbers. He looked up as Flik walked in.

"You got any extra paper?" Flik asked.

He shook his head. "Talk to Barbara. She'll know where any extra might be."

Flik nodded his thanks and then said, "How's the numbers?"

"Not too good," Edrick answered, chewing on his pencil. "Peace just doesn't pay well, begging your pardon."

Flik shrugged. "Well, I'll see about getting us some more money. Excuse me." He ducked back out under the door and walked towards the stairs. Sen was standing there, playing desultorily with a yo-yo. Flik rolled his eyes and went down stairs. Crossing the main room, he almost stumbled into Tuta, coming out of the sick ward.

Tuta was a ten-year-old boy, but already a skilled physician. He was a short little sprout, with orderly black hair that was pulled back under a little orange cap. He was wearing a yellow shirt, white apron, and brown gown. He carried a black bag of doctor's implements. Though usually he was a bubbly young boy, around his patients, he had an unnerving calmness. It was this calmness that he presented now.

"How are my men?" Flik asked.

"You've got a couple of cases of Senan flu, probably from something that you bought originating in Toran. That's nothing to worry about, as long as they get rest and their clothes and bedding are properly cleaned. That broken arm, though," now he sighed; the physician's eternal lament against unnecessary injuries. "Your men botched the job and set it completely wrong. If we don't transport him to Muse to have it re-broken and then re-set, it will heal poorly and he'll only recover limited use of it. The sooner you do this, the better."

"Fine, I'll see to it." Flik knew better than to doubt young Tuta's recommendations. After all, his master was the famous Doctor Huan, acclaimed throughout Dunan and Toran as the greatest disciple of the legendary Luikan. "Will you be staying here any longer?" Flik asked, pleasantly.

With a shy smile, Tuta turned back into a little boy. "If you'll allow me to. Muse is always so stuffy and crowded. Besides, here I can watch the soldiers train."

"Of course you can stay," Flik answered with a smile. "But don't make too much trouble for Viktor and the others."

"Don't worry," Tuta beamed back, and dashed outside to watch. Flik chuckled, and continued across to the stairs leading into the basement area.

Basement area was a bit of a misnomer, for it was actually the largest part of the fort. In one room was the fort's smithery, where the smith and his few apprentices worked around the clock churning out horseshoes, fixing armor and weapons, and creating all of the other little metal things that a thriving mercenary fort might need. Also down here was the living space for the senior sergeants, apart from the other barracks buildings. None of their rooms were terribly large, but they did provide a degree of privacy.

This was also the area where they kept the lock up, now Riou's semi-permanent home. Thinking about that, Flik realized that he hadn't given the boy anything to do. That would have to change, but he pushed the thought aside for the moment. In spite of everything else down here, it was also a basement, and a basement was where all of that extra junk that people accrued was stored.

And Barbara, scowling as Flik mentioned his need for paper, was master of that domain.

"Paper?" She muttered. "Did not that money man-"

"Accountant." Flik corrected, softly.

"Money man." Barbara continued, loudly. "He needed paper just yesterday." She thrust a finger right at Flik's nose. "You people are always using things up, throwing them away, never thinking about where or when we might get more." She jabbed that finger closer with each point. "You always need paper: toilet paper for wiping your bums, tissue paper for wiping your noses, and writing paper for wiping your brains. Do you think all that paper just grows on trees?"

"Actually, I've heard that trees are the major component of paper," Flik tried, gamely.

This seemed to stick, or perhaps she'd just grown tired of the argument. "We've got some paper in one of those boxes in the back room, over by your jail."

"Thank you," Flik responded, but Barbara had already turned away to organizing some sheets. Taking a lamp, Flik walked over towards the back room. As he passed, he glanced in towards Riou's room. Through the bars on the door window, he could see Riou standing motionless, staring out the outside window, watching the rain fall.

"Got to find something for him to do," Flik muttered softly.

Somehow, Riou heard Flik talking, and wheeled about to stare intently at him. Everything else seemed to drop away as Flik met that gaze, trying to quell a sudden, entirely irrational fear that seemed to bubble up within him. He felt very glad that there was this solid wooden door between the two of them, and yet immediately worried that it wasn't enough, that Riou would, at any moment, choose to batter down the door with his own two fists.

Flik broke the contact, telling himself that Riou was just a kid, like any other kid, not some monster in waiting. Still he was unsurprised to find that his hand had strayed to his sword hilt. He felt an incredible urge to break down in hysterical laughing right on the spot, but suppressed it and instead walked into the back room.

Even with the lamp on, the first thing Flik did upon entering the room was to stumble over clutter on the floor. The room was an awful mess, with boxes piled everywhere, armor tossed about at random, and, at Flik's feet, the same length of still sodden rope that had been used to pull him from the Dorthai River just two days ago. Eventually, Flik did manage to wade through all of the stuff until he could get to some of the boxes. Unfortunately, those boxes were so precariously balanced that they toppled over onto him as he tried to check their contents, and he was buried under a landslide of leather.

He picked himself up and, brushing pieces of leather off him, checked one of the overturned boxes which did, in fact, contain paper. Flik took this moment to wonder why Barbara was so concerned. There was enough paper in that box for each soldier to write a full length novel and then some. Nevertheless, something had to be done about this room.

Walking outside, he grabbed the first senior sergeant he came across, a younger man with auburn hair, and said, "Pohl, I need you to find somebody to clean up that storage room, understand?"

"Sir, yes sir." Pohl answered crisply. Without another thought to that matter, Flik went back upstairs to write his letter.

The days passed quickly and month of Marxa inevitably gave way to Avrai. New recruits and old hands slowly filtered back into the fort, as rumors of war grew. Flik had his scouts in both Toto and Ryube, listening to every bit of information, but there was nothing concrete as of yet. However, on the third of Avrai, Pohl walked into the planning room with an interesting suggestion.

"Sir, I'd like to outfit Riou for a trip to Ryube, to buy some things that we need." Pohl suggested, in his very cheerful and rather unsergeantish manner.

"You what?" Flik goggled, which unfortunately was a mistake, for it gave Viktor an opportunity to speak.

"Yeah, go right ahead," Viktor affirmed, without so much as a look Flik's way.

"Wait, wait a minute," Flik interjected. "You want to send our prisoner out into the countryside alone?"

"No, no, not alone. Leona's convinced Gengen to escort him, and Tuta will go with him, too."

"One undertrained kobold and a physician's apprentice do not sound like very good minders to me." Flik responded, sourly.

"Don't worry so much," Viktor chuckled. "Where's he going to go to escape us? It's not like he can get through the guards at North Sparrow Pass, and he couldn't get anywhere else before we ran him to ground. Besides, you said it yourself; he doesn't look like the type to try and run away."

Flik ground his teeth, but finally conceded with, "Fine, but I'm sending a detachment out after him if he's not back by sundown."

"Thank you, sir," Pohl answered, betraying his newfound liking for Riou.

"By the way," Flik said, before Pohl could leave the room. "What sort of weapon are you giving to him?"

"He seems to have an affinity towards tonfar." Pohl answered. "Luckily, we had a set in one of the storage rooms.

"Tonfar," Flik mused. "Now those are strange weapons…and why would we have a pair here at the fort?"

"Dumb luck?" Pohl suggested. Viktor shrugged. Somehow, neither of those answers was any comfort to Flik.

To Flik's relief, Riou's mission to Ryube Village went off without a hitch, and he returned to the fort long before the sundown deadline. Viktor, on the other hand, was not terribly satisfied with the results.

"Where's my flint?" Viktor growled at a very shamefaced Pohl, as he reported the results to the two of them in the planning room.

"Sir, you…uh, I've only got two flint requests, and they were from Barbara and Rossgard. You didn't write down any request for yourself."

"For crying out loud," Viktor cried out loud. "I told you I wanted some flint right after lunch. Did you stuff your ears full of mashed potatoes or something?"

"That's enough, Viktor." Flik intervened, putting his hand on Viktor's shoulder. "It's an honest mistake." Pohl looked terribly relieved to hear that, and slipped out the door before Viktor could say anything more.

Viktor, though, rumbled like a volcano threatening to erupt. "You wouldn't be so calm if these sort of things happened to you, Flik. First my rope and now my flint."

"Your rope?" Flik queried.

"Yes my rope! I can't find it. I placed it down in the storage room the other day, and when I went to get it back, it was gone."

"Um…can't you just get another?" Flik suggested.

"That was my favorite rope," Viktor groaned. "I could never use another."

"I think you're taking this way too seriously, Viktor." Flik replied, hoping to end the matter.

Sadly, Viktor was still in a foul mood when he led the men out for battle practice the following morning. Flik could hear him tearing into the men for minor infractions. Later, during the actual combat phase, it sounded as though Viktor was setting off explosives on the field, though that was certainly an impossibility. Flik sighed, and wondered how much damage Viktor was doing with his overtraining.

Yet, when Viktor emerged into Flik's room, later that day, his mood had changed completely. He was also covered in liquid.

"Is that…oil?" Flik asked, getting a scent of it.

"Yeah," Viktor laughed. "I set up some barrels for practice, but I didn't know that one of them still had some oil in it." He shrugged, causing more oil to spill off of him and pool on the floor.

"Viktor," Flik chided. "You're getting oil all over the place."

Viktor glanced about, as if noticing for the first time. "You seem to be right," he replied. "Don't worry, I'll get someone to clean this mess up." He stepped out into the hall. Flik went back to his writing, but it wasn't long before he heard Viktor's voice command, "Pohl, find somebody to clean this oil up."

"Sir, yes sir." Was Pohl's reply.

Flik smiled; this was the sort of order that would probably makes its way down to the very bottom of the totem pole. It would be informative to see who exactly was at the very bottom.

That answer arrived in mid-afternoon, as Flik was searching through the filing cabinets in the planning room. Riou, a rag in hand, did not even bother to knock on the door before quietly walking into the room and going over to the oil on the floor to wipe it up. Flik could not help watching him at the work. Riou moved with stoic efficiency, carefully wiping up every spot, rather than doing a lackadaisical job that one might have expected out of a prisoner.

Flik decided to speak. "You're doing a good job, Riou." Riou looked up, the expression on his face suggesting that he could do no other kind of job. Flik soldiered on with the one sided conversation. "I've sent a letter to Muse. Hopefully, they will work out some sort of prisoner exchange, and you'll be able to go home soon." Riou only nodded in that unperturbed way of his, which was both annoying and unnerving at the same time. Then, seeing that he had finished with this room, he quietly stood up and walked out.

After Riou's departure, Flik sat down at his desk to go over equipment readiness reports. It was mind numbing work and, for the millionth time, he wondered why he hadn't simply assigned a sergeant to be his personal aide. Thus, when a sudden cry of "Intruder!" rang through the hallway, he immediately jumped into action, grateful at the break in the monotony.

Outside of the planning room, Flik paused, trying to get his bearings on the situation. He could hear people blundering about outside of the building, but the interior was oddly quiet. The best thing that he could do was to secure the main doors to the building. This decided, he started for the stairs. It turned out to be the best timing he'd ever had, for just as he was descending the stairs from the second level, Riou was ascending the stairs out of the basement.

Normally, this wouldn't have been cause for alarm, for in recent days Riou had been given an increasing amount of freedom. However, he wasn't usually allowed to wander around with his tonfar in hand. Of course, he also wasn't usually in the company of another youth, this one with blond hair bordering on silver and wearing a sleeveless blue shirt and white pants. This new arrival was armed with a long, blue staff, with little silver dragon heads at either end. Flik suddenly recognized him as the other boy from the river.

They stared at each other for just a moment, then the newcomer said, in a desperate tone of voice, "Come on Riou, we have to break through." Swinging his staff, he leapt forward to try and knock Flik aside. Casually, Flik unsheathed his sword and blocked the staff aside. Following through on the motion, Flik stepped towards his opponent and delivered a blow with his shoulder, knocking the boy to the ground. Bringing his blade back around, Flik intended to place it firmly on the boy's neck, but at that moment Riou jumped forward, parrying the blow with his tonfar.

Flik suddenly felt a giddy anticipation rush through his body; the long anticipated conflict was about to be joined. Flik shifted his position slightly, bearing down on Riou's guard. However, as he did so Viktor, at the head of about ten men, burst through the main doors to help. Obviously, this was not the moment to settle this.

"That's enough. It's time to give up, Riou," Flik said, gently, suddenly stepping back. Riou nearly pitched forward, but caught himself at the last moment, standing over his friend. For a moment Riou paused to consider, seemed to be weighing the chances of his success in a fight.

Then, so suddenly and softly that Flik almost did not catch it, he said, "I understand," and placed the tonfar on the floor.

With a gesture, Flik sent four soldiers forward to tie their arms. They did this quickly and efficiently, but also without malice, for the men had come to like Riou in the past few days. The prisoners were then escorted up to the planning room, and Flik took a seat at the map table, while Viktor remained standing, next to him. The two boys exchanged glances, but said nothing.

"What have we here?" Viktor asked, halfway between menace and laughing out loud.

"The other boy from the river." Flik answered. He then stood up and addressed said boy. "And what is your name?"

The boy looked briefly at Riou, who only nodded slightly, then he answered, "I'm Jowy, of the Highland Unicorn Brigade."

"Riou said something about a State attack on your unit." Viktor commented. "Why don't you tell us about that?"

Again Riou and Jowy exchanged looks. Then Jowy continued, "It was set up to look that way, but really, Prince Luca and his men attacked the Unicorn Brigade and slaughtered our friends. He said he needed an atrocity to get the war started again."

"How do you know all this?" Flik interrupted.

"When the attack started, Riou and I followed our captain's orders and tried to escape to the east. But I felt that there was something wrong with the route, so we went back to try and talk to the captain. That's when we saw Luca, talking with our captain. That's how I know."

"And you escaped by jumping into the river?" Flik concluded.

"It was our only choice," Jowy pleaded. "They were going to kill us."

"Well." Viktor clapped his hands together. "That's a fine story. But, you're still our prisoners and our prisoners you'll stay."

"That's correct." Flik replied. "If what you say is true, then we'll need you to provide your story to the proper authorities. I'm sorry to say that we just can't let you go free. Also, Riou, I'm afraid that I'm going to have to revoke your privileges for a while, seeing as you just abused them by trying to escape." Flik motioned the men at the door forward. "Take them back to the lock up, then untie them and give them some food."

After the prisoners were taken away, Flik sank back down into his chair. Viktor grabbed the chair over by the accountant's table and dragged it over, plopping down into it backwards.

"I thought Prince Luca Blight was still up in Harmonia, getting some 'seasoning'." Viktor commented, after a while.

"Obviously, either he or the Harmonians finally got tired of pretending to be sociable to one another, and now he's come home."

"So, what's he like as a commander, Flik? Is this going to change the war any?" Viktor gestured at the map.

"Don't know." Flik replied. "He got a reputation as aggressive beyond all reason, and that's certainly different from the recent Highland generals."

"Yeah," Viktor laughed, "I was getting used to skirmishing for a few days and then sitting on my butt for the rest of the month."

"Well, I can assure you that he won't be like that," Flik said, morosely. "He'll want to test Muse's defenses somewhere, and soon."

"That's not good," Viktor answered. "Our generals are about as lethargic as Highland's."

"We'll see," Flik tried to sound optimistic. "He may turn out to be a terrible commander. Or he may not even get a command." Viktor frowned; even Flik couldn't muster up the faith to believe in those words. The light through the window was the brilliant red of a setting sun.


	4. Chapter 4 To Kyaro

**Chapter 4- To Kyaro**

The next day dawned bright and clear, but chilly. Flik decided to lead the men through their daily routine and thus, it was late in the afternoon when he finally settled down to another round of writing letters to unresponsive Muse officials. Or, he would have, had Viktor not chosen that moment to duck in through the door in an ecstatic mood with Sen perched precariously on his shoulders.

"We've finally got news!" Viktor yelled happily, capering around the room.

"News?" Flik asked, wondering if this conversation was going to be worth it.

"Yeah, I sent Sen up to Kyaro to find out what the Highlanders were up to-"

"Wait," Flik interrupted, rising out of his chair. "You sent Sen on a mission without telling me?"

That stopped the dancing in a hurry. "It wasn't like I was in any danger," Sen offered, meekly, as he climbed down from Viktor's shoulders.

"That's not the point," Flik answered, though it was, at least in part. "It's the principle of the matter; I said that I wanted to be informed of Sen's missions and I wasn't."

"I'm sorry," said a rather crestfallen Viktor. "He just looked bored and I didn't think I was sending him into any danger, so I didn't think to tell you." Then, suddenly, he smiled again. "Come on, Flik, it's not as if I was going to send him directly into a Highland encampment to find out how many days worth of food they have, or something like that."

Flik chewed that over for a moment, working out a reply. That reply was never given, though, because at that moment Pohl rushed through the door with a shout of "Commander, we've got trouble!"

"What sort of-" Flik began, but Pohl unfortunately was in such a rush that he hadn't noted Viktor and bashed right into him. Viktor, of course, was unmoved, but Pohl was almost literally bounced out into the hall. The three of them- Flik, Viktor, and Sen- came out to see if he was all right.

"I'm sorry!" Pohl said, rubbing his forehead.

"Don't say you're sorry until you've told us the problem," Flik said, annoyed.

"Right." Pohl blushed in humiliation. "Riou and Jowy have escaped."

"They what?" roared Viktor.

Pohl cringed. "They weren't in their cell this morning, but I thought one of you might have taken them out, but you've both returned and they haven't. I'm sorry, I know you told me to keep a closer watch on them."

Flik sighed. "I should've seen that coming. Never mind the blame; our first priority is to figure out where they might go."

"They'll probably try to go home." Viktor offered, helping Pohl back to his feet.

"Maybe," Flik said. "They'll have to go through North Sparrow Pass to get there."

"If they do get back to Kyaro," Sen piped in, "they'll be in a lot of trouble."

Flik's eyebrows jumped up his forehead. "Why's that?"

Sen beamed. "When I was in Kyaro, I heard the Highlanders saying that two traitors in the Unicorn Brigade helped the State Army during the massacre. That would put Riou and Jowy in a lot of danger if they went back there."

Pohl nearly fainted. "We've got to save them."

Flik shook his head. "Not much we can do tonight. The horses are still spent from today's exercises, but I'll send a rider off to North Sparrow Pass. I don't think they'll get through the checkpoint."

"Don't worry, Pohl." Viktor added, slapping him on the back. "We'll scoop them up tomorrow. After all, they don't have any horses, they don't have any food, and they don't have any connections around here. They're not going anywhere."

Pohl did not look convinced.

Somewhere, deep down in his psyche, Flik wasn't convinced either.

Early the next morning, Flik and Viktor led the scouts out in pursuit. It was a beautiful morning, clear and chill, and the trees were filled with little green leaves and the beginnings of blooms. Their first destination was the little village of Ryube, nestled in a fertile valley created by two ridges of the Aramayan range. In the outlying farms, people were already busy with the planting. The workers hardly looked up at the passing of the mercenaries.

The town itself was a collection of a couple hundred houses at the far end of the valley, abutting the forests that sprawled over the slopes. Despite the small size, Ryube was one of only two urban centers in the province of East Muse, and so was fairly prosperous in relation to the surrounding countryside. That said, it only had a low stone wall for defense, without so much as a gate to keep intruders out.

Inside, it was quieter than usual, almost as if the town was hung over. In the central square, there was the detritus of recent festivities, bits and pieces of colored streamers strewn on the ground. There was a wooden, two-story inn at the near end of the square, and Flik halted the patrol in front of it, dismounted, and walked in.

The desk at the front was empty, the common room to the side was empty, the whole building seemed to be asleep. Flik pounded on the service bell at the desk for a while, and eventually the proprietor, red eyed and stubble cheeked, staggered out from a back room and came to the desk.

"What in blazes could anyone want so early in the morning?" he shouted into Flik's face, but then his eyes focused and he saw clearly who it was that he was speaking to. "Pardons," he tried again, in a different tone of voice. "I had a bit too much celebrating for my wife's tastes and she kicked me downstairs to sleep last night. You know how it is, right?"

Flik didn't -even the idea of marital disputes made his heart ache for Odessa a little- but he nodded yes to get the conversation moving along. The mercenaries were well known and well respected in Ryube, as they were often in town buying the produce of the local area.

"So, what was the celebration about?" Flik asked, pleasantly.

This perked the innkeeper right up. "Ah, a group of performers from the Grasslands was recently in town and they had the grand finale of their act yesterday." He sighed. "That one fortuneteller was very pretty." he said wistfully, explaining in a sentence at least one reason why his wife wasn't happy. Flik again nodded, sociably. "Enough of that," the innkeeper suddenly blushed. "What brings you here this morning?"

"I'm looking for two teenage boys that might have come through here yesterday. They're escaped prisoners."

The innkeeper shook his head. "Well, they certainly chose the right time to escape. Everybody for miles around was in town yesterday, so I don't know if I can help you. What did they look like?"

"Average height on both. One's got brown hair and he's wearing a red tunic and black pants. The other's got very light hair, almost silver, and he's wearing a blue shirt and white pants. Does that help?"

The innkeeper thought about it a moment and then suddenly burst out laughing. He wheezed and wheezed and became very red in the face, to the point that Flik thought seriously about leaping over the counter to see if he couldn't save the man. Eventually, though, he managed to collect his breath. "Yeah, they were here yesterday," he gasped, still chuckling a little. "The one in red was part of the knife throwing act. He was spectacular, didn't move a muscle, didn't flinch a bit. Knives flashing through the air at him, and he didn't even blink. That one, he's got ice water for blood."

"Indeed," Flik commented. "Do you know what happened to them after that?"

"Yeah, they were talking with the Grasslanders, so maybe they left with them."

Flik felt a sinking sensation in his stomach. "Do you know where the Grasslanders were going?"

"I think one of them said Kyaro, but I can't be sure. I had, uh, other things on my mind at that moment."

"And when did they leave?"

"That must've been about late afternoon yesterday, as about I reckon. They packed up a wagon and drove off to the north."

Silently, Flik cursed himself. For most of yesterday they had been no more than an hour's hard ride from the fort, but by now, assuming they had traveled through the night, they could easily be at North Sparrow Pass.

"Not the news you wanted to hear?" guessed the innkeeper, reading Flik's face.

"Any news better than none," Flik answered, placing a bag of potch on the counter. "Thank you for your time."

"No problem," responded the innkeeper, happily pocketing the money. "You and your men are always welcome here."

Flik strode out the door and the men, who had taken the moment to rest under the central tree of the square, leapt back to their feet and mounted up.

"You don't look happy." Viktor commented, as they formed up and rode back towards the wall.

"They were here yesterday," Flik said darkly. "Probably most of the day yesterday. I can almost guarantee that some of our men were here as well, men who should've taken them into custody. We missed our best chance to get them."

"Well, can we run them down?"

"I don't know; they hooked up with some Grassland performers and went north with them. They could be all the way to North Sparrow by now."

Viktor laughed, startling Flik. "Don't worry then. At least we know where they went. As long as there's a trail, we can overtake them."

They rode north along the empty road, Flik pushing the pace as fast as he dared without exhausting the horses. Perhaps they could be overtaken in the North Sparrow Pass. Perhaps they had not even been permitted to enter the pass. Embarrassing as it was to lose their two prisoners, it was the knowledge that they faced certain death if they returned to Kyaro that really spurred Flik on.

At midmorning, the scouts sighted a merchant wagon and some mounted guards on the road coming towards them. Flik risked a halt to see if he could find any new information.

"Yah, I saw that Grasslander wagon you're talking about," said the merchant in response to Flik's query. The merchant was a wizened old man, missing more than a few of his teeth, with skin like parchment, and a flop of stringy white hair on his head. And his breath stank. "Didn't see no two little boys there, though. Just two pretty girls and a big monster of a man. Course, they could've been hiding in the wagon, if you say they're fugitives."

Flik nodded; that made a lot of sense. "You say you saw them in the pass?"

"Course I saw them in the pass. Where else would've I seen them? Told them there's no money to be had in Kyaro, and that there's a mist monster in the pass, but they just drove on. Stupid kids!"

"Tell me about Kyaro," Flik said, suddenly. "Are they preparing for war? Have you seen Luca Blight?"

"Course they're preparing for war. Whole lot of troops in Kyaro, and a whole bunch arrived just before I left. They were…yeah, White Wolves, that's who they were. Didn't see no Luca Blight…don't want to see no Luca Blight." The old man spat on the ground. "Highland soldiers should just stay in Highland; Jowston soldiers should just stay in Jowston. Why do you have to go ruining my trade?"

Flik surreptitiously glanced towards his men; Viktor and some of them were happily talking to the merchant's hired guards. Some of them might even be prevailed upon to join after they finished with their current job. Then he made a cursory investigation of the merchant's wares. It seemed to be mostly cloth of some sort.

"Here's a little money for your time," Flik said, cheerily, tossing the merchant some potch. "Do you know the mercenary fort back down the road?" The merchant, who had been busily checking the cash, nodded somberly. "You could always stop in there and try to sell your wares."

"Not a whole lot of money there, either," the merchant commented, a true, if painful, shot at Viktor's organization. "Still, some money is better than none. I hope you find what you're looking for." the merchant said, flicking the reins and getting his wagon moving again.

After that, Flik collected the men and continued the ride north. Somehow Riou and Jowy had managed to get into North Sparrow Pass. It shouldn't have been possible, but once again they'd been able to slip through the cracks. That thought was terribly irritating as Flik turned it over and over in his head, like an oyster creating a pearl. Thus, his mood was not very good by the time the scouts rode up to the checkpoint at the Jowston end of the North Sparrow Pass.

"Where is the commander of this sieve you call a checkpoint?" Flik yelled, nearly trampling the two unfortunate guards, who had been playing a game of dice.

"Duh…" began the more unfortunate of the two unfortunates.

"Don't stand there looking stupid," Flik suddenly felt the almost uncontrollable urge to beat the man with the flat of his blade, "just go and get him."

Luckily for the grunts, the commander chose that particular moment to come sauntering out of the guard hut. Unluckily for the commander, he was obviously drunk and continuing to imbibe from a huge, garish, red, clay jug that he clasped between his hands. He seemed to be unaware of Flik, Viktor, the scouts, or even his own responsibilities as he unfastened his pants and relieved himself vigorously on the ground.

Or he was unaware, until Flik rode up and shattered the jar with one sweep of his sword, spilling the contents all over the commander. The commander stood there dumbfounded, while Viktor wore a huge grin and the rest of the men suppressed laughter.

"Now pull your pants back on before I find something else for my sword to slice," Flik ordered, gripping the hilt of his sword until his knuckles were white.

The commander, who had just opened his mouth to protest, looked at the sword, looked down at his pants, looked back up at Flik, flushed, and hurriedly pulled his pants back up. There was now outright laughter behind Flik, including one of the two checkpoint guards. Guessing from the venomous look the commander shot that guard, said unfortunate had probably committed a career-ending mistake.

That was not Flik's concern. "Did a Grassland wagon and a group of performers come through here six or seven hours ago?" Flik asked the commander, when he finally appeared focused enough to answer questions.

The commander swallowed nervously, shifting his eyes around the clearing, obviously trying to avoid the question. He was, however, still far too drunk for guile. "Uh…yes, there was a Grassland wagon here at that time."

"And were there also two teenage boys with those Grassland performers?"

"Uh…"

"Don't bother trying to lie."

"Yes, they were there."

"Didn't you receive instructions not to let anyone through into Highland?"

"I-I-I did receive those instructions."

Flik sighed. "So why, then, did you ignore them and let those people, including two fugitives on the run, through your checkpoint and out of our custody?"

The commander looked around, but seeing no help forthcoming from any quarter, suddenly sank to his knees and started sobbing. "I-I'm sorry, sir!" He fumbled at his pants belt and produced a little bag. "They bribed me with money and, since our pay is so poor, I took the bribe!" He tried to hand the bag up to Flik.

Flik frowned; Viktor rode forward, took the bag, and jingled it softly. "There can't be more than fifty potch in that bag," Viktor said, chuckling. "No set of border guards in their right minds would accept such a pitiful bribe." He dismissively tossed the bag back at the ground in front of the commander. "I think he was bribed by something else." He smiled and winked knowingly.

Flik colored, realization dawning.

"Ah." The commander tried glancing back and forth between Viktor and Flik, trying to gauge the two of them. Then he tried groveling again. "I'm sorry, sir!" he begged obsequiously at the feet of Viktor's horse. "I'm a lonely man…who hasn't seen his wife in months…and she was just so beautiful…and willing…"

Flik's horse, reading his mood, suddenly reared, nearly spilling him out of the saddle and also nearly trampling the commander. Flik drew his sword, metal glinting in the sunlight. "You are derelict of duty!" he shouted, color riding high on his face. He pulled his sword high overhead, looming over the commander.

The commander screamed shrilly and ducked hard into the turf as Flik swung his sword downward.

"Easy there," Viktor chided, casually reaching with one hand and stopping Flik mid-swing. Flik's anger was still red hot and he tried valiantly to push through Viktor's restraint. Vainly, too, for Viktor held him back as easily as he might have restrained a child. After jerking in the saddle a couple of times, Flik conceded and relaxed.

The commander, when he realized that the killing blow had not landed, looked up cautiously, a grateful smile breaking out on his face, kind of like a rash. He crawled forward on his knees and started kissing the legs of Viktor's horse. "Oh thank you, sir. My life is yours, use it in any way you see fit."

Now that the anger had passed, Flik felt more like throwing up, preferably right on to the scum of a commander.

Viktor had other ideas. "Good, I like your attitude, soldier. I'm taking this patrol through the pass into Highland territory in pursuit. You are going to forget that we ever came through here and, when we return, you will look the other way at that time, too. In return, I won't take this matter up with your superiors next time I'm in Muse. Understand?"

"Viktor," Flik asked, "you can't be thinking of going into Highland, can you?"

"Why not?" Viktor answered. "I said that as long as there's a trail, we can overtake them. The trail's still there, Flik, and I'm going to catch them, one way or another."

The commander, his kisses gradually working there way up the horse's chest, nodded his exuberant acquiescence to the plan. Viktor's horse backed away.

Flik looked up at the clouds passing in the noontide sky. "Fine, let's do this." Then he glanced back to the commander. "We're going into the pass; I trust that you will remember this little agreement."

Flik waited only so long as it took the two guards to move away one part of the barricade and then he led the scouts through. Inside, the pass was rough going. It was mostly bare rock flanked by steep, though not vertical, slopes. Its width was irregular, sometimes as wide as a hundred feet, yet around a turn the walls would rush in to a tithe of that distance. At this time of the year, the pass was also very wet; thousands of tiny rivulets streaming down from the mountains filled every little interstice with a pool of standing water.

Up above, the slopes were wooded, and in the narrows, the trees served to block out much of the sun. It was much cooler and, though there seemed to be no sign of a mist monster, there was a misty haze in the pass.

"Sure like to have a thousand men and a good fort here," Viktor mumbled, at one point. "I could hold this place forever and a half with that."

"And while you stood here and twiddled your thumbs," Flik laughed, "Highland would march through one of the other gates and ignore you entirely." Viktor began to growl, but Flik waved him off, continuing in a more serious tone, "We're trying not to provoke a war here, so let's be careful."

"Still like to have a thousand men and a good fort here," Viktor concluded, after nodding to Flik's point.

The ride through the pass was uneventful, but slow, the treacherous footing forcing the riders to proceed at the slowest possible pace. Sometimes they even had to dismount and walk the horses through difficult stretches. The pass began to rise steadily towards the Kyaro end and dry out, too. Finally, after climbing a sharp and twisting rise, they caught their first view of the Kyaro Valley.

It was vast, though not so big as the province of East Muse, surrounded by low mountains on all sides, and heavily forested in parts. The mountains to the north were out of sight on this day, though there was a slight haze in the distance as the sun tracked down towards the western ridges. The town of Kyaro itself was closer to the southern ridges, where Viktor and Flik now stood. It was clearly larger than either Ryube or Toto, but, like them, it was not terribly urban. It was merely the meeting point in a sea of fertile farmland.

Staring down the path as it sloped into the valley, Flik noted the obvious lack of soldiers at the Highland side.

Viktor noted it, too. "With a thousand men, I could march down there and control the whole province." He looked eager to try it.

"Yeah, until some portion of the Highland army came by and beat the stuffing out of you. Then what would you do?"

"Hey, stop messing with my daydreams, Flik." Viktor said, raising his voice just a bit.

Flik shrugged. "So, how do we want to do this? I don't see lots of soldiers, but I don't think we want to take the entire patrol down into town."

"Nah, just you and I will be fine." Viktor smiled. "We can ride into town pretending to be just what we are, mercenaries, and get all the information we need. If they're there, we grab them and run for the border. If not, then at least we try to find out where they went."

"Sounds good." Flik turned to give orders to the men, but Viktor reached out to stop him.

"Not yet; we've got to come up with some different names."

"What?"

"We can't just march in as Viktor and Flik. Someone might recognize those names. I'll go as Schtolteheim Reinbach the third."

"Viktor." Flik said, in a long-suffering tone of voice. "You always go as Schtolteheim Reinbach the third."

"So?" Viktor asked, in a hurt tone. "He's the hero of the Kooluk-Island Nations War."

Flik cringed. "Viktor," he chided, "in your whole life, how many books have you read?"

"Uh." Viktor spread his fingers, visibly counting on them. "One."

"Right. And that one was that six page rag written by Mickey, which has been proven to be spurious." Viktor looked away. "Everyone knows that the hero of the Kooluk-Island Nations War was King Lino En Kuldes, who had the Great Ship built and then established the Island Nations after the war ended."

"Never mind," Viktor said, huffing out a breath. "You'll go as…Bluto."

"Bluto?" Flik gaped. "Can't you come up with something better than that?"

"If you want a better name," Viktor retorted, sulkily, "you'll have to come up with it yourself."

With that, he spurred his horse down the path.


	5. Chapter 5 Of Battles Past and Present

**Chapter 5- Of Battles Past and Present**

The air smelled of the sweetness of new blossoms as Viktor and Flik rode past the regular rows of an orchard on the outskirts of Kyaro. The last rays of the setting sun flamed gold and red between the peaks of two mountains. The shadow of those mountains just now reached the road, and for a moment Viktor, ahead, rode in the light while Flik, behind, found himself in the darkness.

The gate in the wall was unattended, save for a child, a dog, a donkey, and some chickens. The child, a little boy of about five, and the dog were enthusiastically trying to herd the chickens into cages. Their efforts, however, served only to cancel each other out, and the chickens wandered around in a lazy circle between the two of them. The donkey, hitched to a very simple flatboard cart, regarded the scene with a flick of one ear and then returned to cropping some of the taller grass by the wall.

Inside, the city was dark and quiet, the only sound that of the Alba River gurgling in the distance. In the far distance, some of the manors of the wealthy were visible.

"What now?" Flik asked, feeling a sort of nervous excitement.

"Inn…there," Viktor gestured towards a two story building that was showing some lights. "Let's learn what we can learn."

They dismounted and walked the horses, plus the two extra they had taken in anticipation of Riou and Jowy, over towards the squat stone building. A reedy boy with vaguely reddish hair was standing in the shadows of the entrance.

"Take care of your horses, sirs?" he asked in a high, excited voice.

"Sure thing, kid," Viktor laughed, pressing some potch into his hand.

"I'm not a kid, you big doofus," he said snarkily, "I'm eleven years old."

Viktor laughed some more, but Flik found himself yawning hugely. "I believe you," Viktor continued, jovially. "Since you're not a kid, maybe you can tell us what's going on around here?"

That seemed to strike a chord. "Can I ever!" the kid babbled excitedly. "There were lots of soldiers here preparing for war because the Unicorn Brigade was attacked. The Second Army was here and also the White Wolves. But yesterday, they all left, and then today a pair of traitors were caught. Can you believe they were Riou and Jowy? I can't believe they were the traitors; I always looked up to them."

"Sounds like a lot has happened," Viktor replied. "Here you go." He handed over the reins to the kid. "Take good care of 'em."

After the kid had led the horses off, Viktor turned and said, "Now we've run them down."

Flik shook his head, trying to clear his thinking. His stomach gurgled uncomfortably, signaling an appetite built up over a hard day's travelling. "Doesn't help us much," he finally said. "They're already in Highland custody."

"So, we'll just relieve Highland of their custody." Viktor smiled, patting his sword. "Call it an…involuntary extradition…or something like that."

"A what?" Flik mumbled, trying to follow the conversation.

"Extradition…it's a word I heard somewhere, means something about returning criminals to their home country."

"Viktor…they are in their home country."

"Oh." Viktor's stomach growled mightily. "No use arguing about semantics, then. Come on, I'm hungry."

The interior of the inn was well-lit, warm, and full of delicious food smells, but strangely subdued nonetheless. A few patrons were up at the bar, slowly drinking themselves into somnolence. Viktor and Flik sat down at a table and ordered platefuls of steaming roast beef slices slathered in brown gravy with mashed potatoes and green beans. Flik immediately went about disassembling the food, but Viktor took the moment to chat with the serving girl.

"…yeah, that's right, Schtolteheim's an old family name, from Na-Nal." Flik grimaced between chews. The least Viktor could do was get his facts straight, like the fact that the name was from Middleport. "Now Bluto here, I found him lying half dead on a pier at Karaya, which is in Vinay del Zexay, of course." Flik tried to ignore the tale, concentrating on the tasty food, but the story just kept getting weirder and more incorrect. "So, after he recovered, we went on to Alma Kinan. Let me tell you, that's the strangest place I've ever seen. The people live underground, in a giant cave, and never see the sun at all. The women, they wear rings around their necks, so that they look like giant snakes. The men pierce their lower lip and pull it back like this." Viktor then proceeded to pull down his lower lip to the tip of his chin.

Flik looked at his food, it was all gone. Viktor was just getting into a story about travelling to the Knights of Kamaro, in search of the Fountain of Youth. "I think I've heard enough for one night." Flik said, rising out of his chair. "Don't tell the young lady too many lies, Vi…er… Schtolteheim."

Viktor glowered slightly. "I don't remember that I've ever told a lie, Bluto. It all happened just the way I recall it." Then he smiled goofily and took a bite of meat. "Course, I've been hit in the head so many times, who knows what I know now."

Upstairs, Flik found the room they had been assigned. Their travel bags had already been placed inside. Lighting a single candle, he settled down to his pre-battle routine. Focusing, fingers honed through countless repetitions, he checked his armor, searching for breaks, chinks, and other signs of disrepair. He pulled out his shield, feeling the tightness of the boss, the soundness of the wood backing, even noting scratches in the paint finish.

When he got to the cape, though, his mind began to wander. It was a mass of stitches, hastily repaired rents that told the story of battles past and present. One told of an arrow received at Gregminster Castle. This one brought back memories of his first meeting with Viktor, on the docks of Vinay del Zexay. Flik laughed ruefully; he had been terribly inexperienced and overconfident at that time, a youth of sixteen running away from Warrior's Village. Those Falenan bravos would certainly have killed him if Viktor hadn't come along at that moment.

And another rip, Flik's eyes teared, told of his first meeting with Odessa. She had been attacked by assassins, and he had blindly rushed to her aid. Death had been close at hand that time, too. Now he pulled free his sword, named for the only thing he had ever loved, examining the blade glinting in the light of the candle. His throat tightened. "I will make myself worthy of your love." he said, quietly.

"You already are," Viktor's voice boomed out of the darkness. Flik spasmodically half-jumped, half-lunged upright, heart suddenly gone into overdrive. Viktor, sitting on one of the two beds, laughed heartily. He continued seriously, "Of all the men I know, you are the most worthy of being loved."

"I failed to protect her; how can I be worthy of her love?"

Viktor rolled his eyes. "I don't understand you, Flik. You forgave Tir McDohl, hell, you even forgave me…after a while…why can't you forgive yourself?"

Flik knew he didn't have a good answer for this, though he'd thought about it a lot.

_Because if I claim responsibility for it maybe, just maybe, I can believe that her death had meaning, instead of simply being a random act of fate. Because I felt, just for a moment, that the Liberation Army was more important than our love. Because I feel her slipping away from me, bit by bit, each memory fading away over the gulf of time._

_Because it's easier holding on than letting go._

"You're brooding, Flik." Viktor chided.

"I am not." Flik responded, sulkily.

Viktor laughed. "Fine. Remember her how you want, but don't be dead to love. You never look happy when you're thinking about her, but she always smiled when she was thinking about you. She'd want you to be happy again, even with someone else."

Flik suddenly felt a spasm of red rage. "My love is constant, unwavering!" he shouted, suddenly throwing his sword scabbard at Viktor. Nonchalantly, Viktor plucked it out of the air. "I'm not going to…to become like that guard commander…so desperate that I'll sleep with anyone, anytime!"

They stared at each other for a long moment, Flik huffing heavily, Viktor with an even expression on his face.

Flik shook his head and let his emotions slide away into the blackness. "I'm sorry," he said, quietly.

Viktor passed the scabbard back. "No problem. But don't beat yourself up forever…it gets tedious." Then, pulling off his boots, he rolled over on the bed, facing away from Flik. "I'm going to get some sleep now. Don't stay up too late, or you'll be sleepwalking through the action tomorrow."

In fact, Flik did not feel terribly rested when the first shafts of misty light filtered through his window early the next morning. The air was definitely chilly and his bed suddenly felt very warm. On the other hand, Viktor, in the bed across the room, was snoring like a saw cutting boards. Flik got up.

The inn was quiet and felt empty. Flik worked his way downstairs and to a courtyard in the back. There he found a hand pump connected to the well and squeakily pumped out a basin full of water. Then, meticulously, he proceeded to shave himself, watching his reflection in the water. This finished, he went around to the front of the inn to regard the rest of the town.

The square at the front was empty, the town gates were closed, and everything still lay in shadows, for the sun had not yet risen above the distant eastern mountains. Flik casually strolled up the cobblestone street and across the little span over the Alba River. On this side of the river, the houses were larger and much more ornate, miniature copies of the great mansions that stood at the crest of the hill. Merchants and businessmen slavishly aping those they considered their superiors.

Flik puffed out some of the morning air and worked his way up the hill, towards one particular building on the outskirts. Nestled among the great houses of the rich, sticking out like a soldier who had forgotten the drill, was a large, squat building of undressed stone. It was obviously the local guardhouse and probably where Riou and Jowy were being held. He didn't see any soldiers in sight, but it still didn't look like the sort of place they'd want to try and rush with just the two of them.

He turned around and started back down the hill. Halfway back, the sun finally rose above the mountains, bathing the town in its light and casting huge shadows off to the west. The mist began to burn away and the air warmed up. People were shaking off their slumber and setting up awnings and shops for the new day. The city gates were opened and a stream of wagons poured through them.

Viktor was still snoring away when Flik returned to the room. He could not help but laugh, thinking of his friend's admonition last night, just before going to bed. "Wake up, you great oaf!" He continued to chuckle, shaking Viktor vigorously. "Stay asleep any longer and _you_ will be the one sleepwalking through the action."

In response, or perhaps just by reflex, Viktor swung out with his right hand. Flik, though, was ready, jumping back and watching as his friend unceremoniously toppled out of the bed and onto the floor in a heap. Slowly, Viktor sat up and untangled himself from his blankets. "Now why'd you do that?" he asked Flik, rubbing at the back of his head. "I was right in the middle of one of the best dreams I've ever had."

Flik sat down on his bed, continuing the conversation cheerily. "Back at the fort, you would've been up hours ago, running the men through their morning exercises."

Viktor wadded his blankets up into a large ball and chucked the arrangement in Flik's general direction. The conglomeration fell apart midway between the beds, collapsing in a mess on the floor.

"And…what was your 'great' dream about?" Flik asked, ignoring both the blankets and Viktor's sour expression.

"Ah…" Viktor squeezed his eyes shut, apparently trying to think hard. After a few moments, he angrily pounded the floor in frustration. "Damn…I completely forgot. See what your waking me up has done? Ruined the greatest dream of my life."

"Very good. While you were busy working on your dreams, I took a look up the hill and found the local guardhouse. That's probably where they're holding Riou and Jowy."

This news seemed to cheer Viktor considerably. He jumped up off the floor and rubbed his hands vigorously. "So, we just walk up this hill, clunk some heads together, and ride out of town with our two guests of honor?"

"That would've been my very last plan of action." Flik replied. Viktor frowned again; Flik continued speaking. "The guardhouse is a difficult place to get into, with only one path of approach. I was hoping to learn more about the execution site, which might offer us better options."

"But if we time that wrong, we kind of lose the whole purpose of our coming here."

Flik stood up. "Well, let's at least try to find out when the execution is, and…" his stomach growled, "let's get some breakfast."

Halfway through breakfast, a small contingent of soldiers entered the inn, bearing a stack of broadsheets. After watching them paste several of the sheets in a prominent location, Flik nodded to Viktor, got up, and casually walked over. The broadsheets all discussed the same topic, the impending execution of the two traitors, Riou and Jowy. Leaning forward and reading the smaller print, Flik determined that they would be ritually marched to the outskirts of Kyaro and then hanged at sunset. As he straightened out, he noticed the commander of the little detachment regarding him, especially his sword.

Flik tried on just a little bit of a scowl and said, "Traitors like these two deserve to die. Nothing worse in my line of work than to discover that your closest confidants are selling you out to the enemy."

That did the trick. The commander stepped forward and asked, "Just what is your line of work? And who are you?"

In an instant, Flik switched from scowl to smile. "My name is Bluto, sir. Chief negotiator for the Drakenguard Mercenary Company, of which my chief is that hairy beast over by the table." He gestured meaningfully in Viktor's direction. "We had heard rumors that the war was heating up again, so we came hoping to sign on under the main army."

"Hmm, mercenaries, you say?" the commander replied, with just a touch of scorn on his voice. "Just a little too late, I'd say. The main army's already gone out to the staging area. Left but two days ago, leaving only Captain Rowd's unit behind, and I doubt he'd hire on your little group." The commander waved dismissively. "Best you can do is run after the army, if you want a job. Now excuse me." The squad of men, finished wallpapering the wall with broadsheets that all said the same thing, turned and departed. Flik casually walked back to the table.

"Well?" Viktor asked, after Flik had been mum for several minutes.

"Learned all we'll need, and a little more besides, but we shouldn't talk about it right here." Flik answered, projecting a calm that he didn't feel.

After the breakfast was over, back up in their little room, the first thing Flik did was grab the pillow off his freshly made bed and hurl it across the room. Then, struggling to keep his voice under control, Flik spoke. "Of all the horrendous times and places to have perfect intelligence. Their whole stupid army left two days ago for the staging area. They'll probably attack before the week is out, and we won't even be able to warn Muse."

Viktor shrugged his shoulders. "We'll see about that when the time comes. What about Riou and Jowy?"

Flik managed to speak normally, this time. "They're to be executed on the outskirts of town at sundown. I still figure that's the best time to rescue them."

Viktor smiled grimly. "Well then, that's how we'll do it." He then proceeded to collapse right back into bed and, incredibly, started snoring almost as soon as his head touched the pillow.

Flik, try as he might, was unable to follow his friend's example. He lay down on his bed and closed his eyes, but all that did was allow him to visualize the upcoming fight and everything that might go wrong. Sighing, he got up and began to pace about the room, Viktor's snores taunting him with each step. Eventually, he did lie down and close his eyes, though sleep would not come. The day wore on monotonously, but eventually the sun began to sink into the west.

Getting up from the bed, Flik walked over to the window and watched the crowd assembling. Then, deeming the moment right, he went over to Viktor's bed and, with his sword scabbard, gently prodded Viktor in the ribs.

Viktor rolled over, opened his eyes, and said, sleepily, "Is it that time already?"

Flik, belting on the scabbard, nodded in reply.

Minutes later, after settling accounts with the innkeeper and collecting the horses, they were out in front of the inn. The crowd was definitely thicker than a few moments ago.

"What do you say to finding some place a little more discrete?" Viktor said, raising his voice slightly above the babble around them. "Wouldn't do us any good if one of those "traitors" blew our cover by recognizing us and besides," he wiped his brow, "it's hot out here in the sun."

They walked the horses down into an alley between two of the buildings. It was cooler, but the view of the street was mostly obstructed. Still, they didn't have long to wait. A sudden hush came over the crowd and Flik walked towards that end of the alley, trying to get a better view. He didn't see them until they were almost directly in front of the inn. Both Riou and Jowy looked worn, but neither seemed to be defeated in spirit. Riou marched along aloof and distant, seemingly unconcerned with the crowd. Jowy, on the other hand, looked tense and angry.

At that moment, as they were passing in front of the alley, the crowd suddenly murmured, and Flik heard the sudden clattering of hooves on the cobblestones and the spinning of wooden wheels. An ornate carriage, pulled by two beautiful, white horses, rolled into the square, completely blocking Flik's view from the alley. He swore under his breath, and then nearly jumped right out of the alley when Viktor tapped him on the shoulder.

"Don't do that," Flik whispered, heatedly, trying to control his breathing.

"…they seem so young to be spies." A girl's voice was speaking from the other side of the carriage.

"We are not the traitors here," Jowy replied, in anger, "it is Highland who betrayed us."

"I think it's time for us to be getting to the execution site, unless we want to miss the main attraction." Viktor said, pulling Flik away from the street and back towards their horses.

Flik felt a sudden spasm of nervousness, but then it melted away as his battle instincts kicked in. "Yes, it is time." He then strode past Viktor and mounted.

Viktor, looking up at him, only commented, "You've got that look, again."

They rode their horses at a brisk walk down one of the side streets, through another alley, and managed to reach the gates before the procession. There were no guards in evidence, though they might have simply moved to another location to watch the events. Regardless, no one challenged them as they passed through. The sun hung bloated and crimson among the western clouds as Viktor and Flik walked the horses to the orchard alongside the road, dismounted and secured the horses, and then waited.

The prisoners and their guards were along shortly, marching past the orchard on foot, save for one officer on a dun horse. This, Flik decided, must be the infamous Captain Rowd, confidant of Luca Blight, left to guard Kyaro in the wake of Highland's offensive. Flik snorted, tightening his grip on his sword and earning a pointed glance from Viktor. Rowd didn't look like much, just a blond haired, straight-jawed, bootlicker who'd been in the right place at the right time.

They trailed the execution party down the road, until it turned towards a fenced clearing at the end of the rows of trees. In that clearing was the instrument of justice, a scaffold with two nooses already prepared. Pausing just out of sight of the clearing, Flik turned to discuss a brief strategy with Viktor.

"If at all possible, I want to take Rowd as a prisoner," Flik stated. "He might have some useful information about the campaign."

Viktor nodded, pulling out his sword. "So, I saw six guards, plus this captain. If we split up, we can defeat the guards and catch the big fish between us."

Flik drew his own sword, it's blade reflecting the red light of the sun in an ominous foreshadowing of the events to come. "Let's do this." Flik answered, grimly.

Whenever he reflected upon it later, especially in regards to the events that followed, Flik always remembered this as one of his easiest fights. Of course, that had almost no bearing on how he felt in the moment. Slipping out from underneath the trees, muscles tensed, breathing regular, but slightly accelerated, he found the first two guards posted as sentries at the gate in the fence around the clearing. However, they were looking the wrong way, back towards the execution site, and not out towards the road. Thus, when Flik cleanly decapitated the first of the two guards, his partner only had the barest inkling that something was wrong before he, too, met with Flik's blade.

The second corpse had not even finished collapsing to the ground before Flik opened up into a sprint towards the scaffold. Out of the corner of his eye, he noted Captain Rowd looking off towards the setting sun, apparently in a monologue about his future career. The two soldiers on the scaffold were doing their best to make Riou and Jowy's final moments uncomfortable ones, beating on them with clubs. Neither of those soldiers even registered Flik's presence until he leaped onto the wooden planking. The closer soldier only managed to look up before Flik managed to ram his sword into his neck. The last soldier was only able to cry out as Flik barreled into him, shield bashing him into one of the posts of the scaffold and knocking him senseless.

Rowd, dimly aware that all was not as it should be, shook himself out of his reverie and said, "Huh?"

Flik, engaged in cutting the ropes that secured Riou and Jowy, smiled and answered, "I think you'll have to put those promotion plans on hold."

At that moment, Viktor burst from the trees at the far end of the clearing and shouted, "Stay right where you are, Rowd, if you want to live through this."

Rowd, naturally enough, chose to run, quickly abandoning his sword, shield, helmet, armor, and finally kicking off his iron boots in an attempt to flee the field of honor more quickly. Viktor chased him off into the woods, but returned empty handed after a few moments. Between big gulps of air, he said, "I'm sorry. I would've caught him if I were just a little younger."

Flik, working on the ropes that bound Jowy's hands, only shrugged as a response. Then, finishing with the rescue, he quickly checked over his own body for any injuries that he might have sustained. Finding none, he allowed himself a sigh of relief at surviving another battle.

Viktor, meanwhile, was speaking to the two former prisoners. "Of course we came after you. You're our special guests. Besides, Pohl begged me to pull your chestnuts out of the fire, so I couldn't go and let you be executed."

On hearing the word "executed", Jowy suddenly started, blurting out, "We've got to go save Nanami. She's still back in the cell."

Flik, cleaning his sword on the cloak of the nearest soldier, blinked. Viktor asked, "Who's Nanami?"

"Riou's sister," Jowy answered, instantly. Then, grabbing Riou by the shoulders, he said, "We've got to save her, right."

Riou, calmly enough- considering it was his sister- replied, "Yes, let's go save Nanami."

Without another word, the two of them started sprinting right back towards Kyaro.


	6. Chapter 6 A Deep Breath

**Chapter 6- A Deep Breath Before the Plunge**

There was nothing to do except sprint right after Riou and Jowy. Flik finally overtook them about halfway down the road, with Viktor puffing along as best he could. Then, backtracking into the orchard, they recovered the horses and rode towards Kyaro at the fastest pace that Flik dared. Save for the looming shadows out of the west, the road to the town was completely empty, but as they entered Kyaro, they found a minor disaster.

Carts and wagons and horses packed the gate and square near the exit, the drivers arguing and brandishing whips, and leaderless soldiers scurrying between everything trying to make order out of it all. The cacophony was deafening and Flik's horse started to dance about nervously in the press. Flik, finding no way forward, casually reached out and slugged the closest horse in the head, causing it to rear and step away. The driver of the wagon the horse was attached to gave Flik an evil glare, but was too busy using his whip to control the horse to be able to use it against Flik. Meanwhile, the created gap was just enough, and Flik pressed his horse forward, overriding its skittishness with sheer willpower.

A few minutes later, riding clear of the jam, he looked back to try and find the others. Riou rode out calmly, almost serenely, as if the crowd had parted to let him through. Jowy also proved to be an excellent horseman, though he, at least, was sweaty from the effort. Viktor, naturally enough, bludgeoned his poor horse through the crowd by dint of his- Viktor's, not the horse's- intimidating bulk.

Working their way up the long hill towards the guardhouse, the four riders found themselves overtaken by the evening shadows. At one point, Jowy turned slightly aside, slowing his horse as he paused to look at one particular manor. Then, sighing angrily, he quickly rejoined the others. Approaching the squat guardhouse, Flik could hear the rising sound of men shouting, interposed with a girl's yells. Riou and Jowy quickly kicked their horses into a gallop, forcing Flik and Viktor to ride after them. Pressing through the open gate, everything became ominously quiet.

Suddenly, two guards appeared out of the shadows. Flik shouted out a warning to Riou and Jowy and pulled his sword free of its scabbard. The two guards, though, were in no mind to fight. Nearly trampled over by the two teenagers out in front, they clumsily careened off each other, the horses, the doors of the gate, and then scrambled, terrified, out of the guardhouse as fast as they were able.

Coming out towards a sandy mustering ground, Riou and Jowy suddenly reined in. Flik urged his horse out in front of the two boys, and was almost immediately rushed at by a young girl aggressively swinging a three-piece rod. She was wearing a yellow, short-sleeved shirt overtopped by a sleeveless red tunic that fell long in the back and a pair of blue pants that were pulled up and tied back just below her knees. Her short brown hair curled back around her ears and cheeks, and she was using a red hair ribbon to hold her bangs in check.

"Get out of the way, I've got to go and save Riou and Jowy," she yelled, not even the slightest quiver of fear in her voice. Flik's horse, sensing his uncertainty, chose that moment to back up slightly, revealing to the girl the objects of her quest. "Hold on a minute," she blurted out, pausing in mid-swing to regard the changing situation. "Riou and Jowy?"

"We were coming to save you," Jowy replied, a little sheepishly.

"Oh, but I was coming to save you two," the girl, obviously Nanami, answered, smiling slightly.

"We can have our tearful reunions later," Viktor suddenly interjected, riding forward. Then, ignoring Nanami's protesting squawk, he pulled her up and placed her behind him on his horse. "I think it's time to get out of here, before somebody arrives to organize things."

In the gathering gloom, the little party rode back down the hill, over the bridge, and back to the entrance square. Some order had been imposed on the riot, but the guards seemed to be more interested in getting people out, rather than in keeping them in, so the five of them unobtrusively mingled with the crowd.

However, just a few yards beyond the gate, Nanami suddenly slid down from Viktor's horse and took a few halting steps back towards Kyaro. Riou and Jowy immediately dismounted and walked back. Viktor turned to look at Flik and rolled his eyes, sighing heavily. Flik walked his horse towards the three kids.

"Do you…ever think we'll come back here?" Nanami was asking, her voice somewhere between excitement and tears.

Flik wanted to groan very badly; this was neither the time, nor the place, and they were still in view of the guards.

Luckily, Riou took this opportunity to reply, "We'll come back someday." This seemed to mollify Nanami, and she permitted herself to be led back to Riou's horse, where they remounted and the party was underway again. Full darkness came on very quickly; the Blue Moon was new and the Scarlet Moon, now a crescent sliver, was fast on the tail of the now set sun. The stars were brilliantly bright points of light and the Silver Dragon spanned the heavens.

The night air quickly became chilly, and then cold. Flik watched as his breath smoked in the air and the sweat of the day's exertion became clammy on his skin. The excitement of the escape wore off and the party became subdued and quiet.

It was, therefore, something of a comfort when, about an hour out from Kyaro, Nanami murmured, "Can we stop soon? I'm tired and cold and hungry." Flik heard Jowy grunt, possibly in agreement. Riou remained stoically silent…or perhaps he'd gone into hypothermia.

"Just a little longer," Viktor replied. "Up in the hills, where the rest of our men are, when we get there, then we will eat and sleep."

This seemed to satisfy them, at least until they went up the first hill. Then Nanami asked, "Are we there yet?"

"No," Viktor answered, crisply, which silenced everybody…until they climbed through a small series of rises.

"We there yet?" Jowy whined.

"No," Viktor answered again, curtly. The silence now became tense, especially as each little rise revealed no end to the journey. The southern mountains of the Kyaro region now loomed over them and the road would soon enter North Sparrow Pass. Looking back, Flik noted the whole of the valley below, shrouded in inky darkness. This was very nearly the same spot they had descended from, two days ago.

"You think maybe we missed them?" Viktor asked him in a hushed tone, as the road turned, obscuring the view.

"A little farther, I think," Flik answered, trying to sound more upbeat than he felt.

"Um," Riou spoke, pointing at something down the path.

"No," Viktor interjected, raising his voice. "We are not there yet. I'll tell you when we're-"

He got no further, for at that moment, the whole of the little area they were in suddenly came alive with fire and sound, torches held aloft and voices barking commands. Armed men emerged from the undergrowth on both sides of the road. Flik scrambled to draw his sword, but several of the adversaries were on him before he could bring the weapon to bear.

In the next couple of seconds, a desperate little melee ensued. Flik's horse, startled by the rush, reared, and Flik was unceremoniously dumped on the ground. Flik, not having any better plan of action, reached out and tripped his closest adversary, and then tried to roll upright. Viktor bellowed, and moments later Flik heard the distinct crackling sound of a nose being broken. From behind him, Nanami shrieked, and Jowy yelled something.

Two men tried to grapple Flik, but he stomped on the foot of one, and kicked him away. The other managed to trip him up, though, dropping Flik back on the ground. He warded off a blow to his head, and then lashed out at the face of his attacker. And then he stared out in wide-eyed wonder.

"Rossgard, is that you?" Rossgard's punch connected squarely on his jaw, but suddenly he seemed to realize whom he was attacking. Flik, jaw throbbing with pain, pushed Rossgard away, stood up, and yelled, trying to get everybody's attention. "STOP! STOP! CEASE AND DESIST!"

As quickly as it had begun, the fighting died away. Flik surveyed the aftermath. Jowy had been pinned underneath his own staff, held firmly by two of the ambushers. Nanami, in the process of elbowing the soldier who had pulled her off her horse, suddenly yelped as she was let go and toppled on to the ground. Riou had impulsively jumped off his horse to save his sister and rushed right into the waiting arms of about six assailants, who among them had immobilized him. Viktor alone had remained mounted and, as the blood on his hand attested, had managed to strike back effectively.

Of course, none of this mattered, seeing as their attackers also happened to be their own mercenaries. There was a moment of embarrassed recognition and then the men released Riou and Jowy.

"Sorry, sir," Rossgard said, pulling himself back onto his feet. "We nearly got spotted by a local patrol, so we're all a little jumpy. It's your own fault, though. We heard you coming a mile away and, thinking you might be another patrol, prepared a little welcoming gift."

Viktor, regarding his bloodied hand with bemusement, began to chuckle, which quickly escalated into full-blown belly laughs.

Flik, with his jaw still twinging a little, managed a weak, "Heh."

The mood was a little more celebratory once they had retreated a little ways into the pass and spread out the food and drinks. Even the unfortunate soldier with the broken nose was wheezing merrily. After eating, Viktor and Flik, along with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami, sat at one of the smaller fires to talk things over. Well, Nanami immediately chose to snuggle into Riou's shoulder and fell off into an uneasy sleep.

Flik smiled and turned his attention to the two boys. "So, what's to be done with you two? Are you still interested in serving Highland?"

Jowy responded immediately, spitting out, "I'll never serve Highland again. They betrayed us, killed all my friends."

Riou remained silent long enough that Flik thought he was simply allowing Jowy to speak for the two of them, but suddenly he spoke up, in a subdued voice, "I don't think it's possible for us to go back at this point."

Flik nodded. "I would like to keep you two close at hand for now. Your testimony might still be valuable, though war seems inevitable, now. Still, I don't think we can rightly call you prisoners anymore, but I'd like you to stay with us."

"Why don't we just make them part of the unit?" Viktor interjected, jovially.

"That's not what I meant," Flik tried to reply.

"Oh, don't be so fussy. What do you two say? Join the unit and you might even get a chance to strike back at Highland."

"Yes, I'll help you," Jowy answered, eyes glittering with intensity.

Again, Riou did not respond for a long time. Again, Flik thought that he was just allowing Jowy to speak for him. Again, Riou proved him wrong. "You came to rescue me, even though you didn't have to. I'll help you in any way that I can." Though his words were soft spoken, they seemed to Flik to be just as earnest as Jowy's bolder answers.

"Then it's settled." Viktor clapped his hands together, signaling for attention. At Riou's side, Nanami yawned awake, looking like she was trying to remember where she was. Other mercenaries drifted in, to see what the noise was about. When Viktor felt that he had a sufficiently large crowd, he continued, officiously, "You men may recall young Riou and Jowy." Flik rolled his eyes and would've sighed, but Viktor continued. "In just a short space of time, their meritorious deeds have mounted to the heavens and shook the earth." Flik decided that Viktor must be feeling the drinks, for only when he was drunk did he get this verbose…that and he was starting to slur every other word. "And now, having been wrongfully cast from their homeland, they crave entrance into this very band of mercenaries from which they so recently escaped." He paused, basking in the anticipation. "And I have accepted, from this day forth, they are commissioned" -which came out commish-on-ed- "as senior sergeants. You men will give them the respect and deference due any other senior sergeant. Now, let's have three cheers!"

As the first cheer roared out, Viktor stepped around, pulled the two new "sergeants" up and slapped them heartily on the back. Neither Riou, nor Jowy seemed to be fully aware of what was happening.

As the second cheer rebounded off the mountains, Nanami looked directly at Flik and asked, "What's going on?"

As the third cheer, which was probably audible in Kyaro, died away, Flik stood up and stalked towards his sleeping roll. What could he say? He had no idea what was going on, either.

_In Solis 460, Firesdei, the 9th of Avrai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I do not think I've spent such a busy series of days since my time in the Toran Liberation Army. Well, we've managed to reacquire the two "prisoners" Riou and Jowy, along with Riou's sister, Nanami. Their situation is terribly pitiable, as they are now exiles from their homeland. Viktor, against my better judgement, has enrolled Riou and Jowy as senior sergeants in the mercenaries. This will keep them close at hand, I suppose, but I am loath to expose them to fighting, which seems inevitable now._

_I have dispatched a fast rider towards Muse, bearing the news that we learned. My sincerest hope is that the full weight of the Jowston City-State Alliance can shortly be mustered against Highland, for I don't think that Muse's strength alone is enough to ward the blow. It feels like the whole region is taking a deep breath before the plunge. But, once the plunge is made, who knows how it will turn out?_

_Thus, if there is any way that I can keep the three of them, Riou, Jowy, and Nanami, out of the fighting, I will take it. Those kids have already suffered enough for one lifetime._

Flik closed the book, pondering the three kids for a while. Well, he decided, if they're in the mercenaries, they ought to have some duties. Something that will keep them occupied, but close at hand, out of trouble. He nodded, that sounded about right. He smiled, whistled tunelessly, and wandered out of his room and down the stairs, to Leona's bar. It being mid-morning, the bar was empty, and Leona was busy cleaning clay pottery mugs. She looked up at his approach.

"Anything I can help you with, commander?" She placed a clean mug down on the counter and mechanically grabbed the next dirty one, never taking her attention from Flik.

"Yes, I was wondering if you've seen Riou, Jowy, and Nanami this morning," Flik said cheerfully.

Leona replied, "They left here a little over an hour ago, after talking to Viktor."

Flik's good mood evaporated. "They left…after talking to Viktor? Did they say where they were going?"

Leona smirked, just a little, at Flik's discomfiture. "I don't believe they did, though Viktor might know. He's out on the practice field, so you can take it up with him." She placed the mug that she'd been working on down onto the counter and reached for the next mug, now turning her full attention back to the job at hand.

Flik stalked from the bar and out the front doors, muttering to himself about "preempting my perfect plans." Outside though, his mood softened as he walked through the beautiful spring morning. The sky was cloudless and blue, the air was warm and fresh, and the trees were budding with leaves and blossoms. He found Viktor running a group of the men through an elaborate obstacle course.

"How could you not see that?" Viktor yelled, after watching one of the men run face first into a revolving bludgeon. The offending soldier apologized profusely, which only served to get him slapped in the back of the head by the next bludgeon, sending him sprawling into the mud. Viktor, noticing Flik, grimaced and walked over to the fallen man. Pulling him aside by the scruff of his shirt, he proceeded lecturing him in a slightly gentler tone. "You've just been killed…twice. You've got to keep your eyes open on the battlefield. Oh, and never apologize…if someone gets the better of you and you're still alive, you've got to work twice as hard to overcome him." Viktor led the soldier back to the beginning of the course. "Now, do it again and this time, keep your eyes open." He slapped the unfortunate man on the back to get him started. Then, ignoring the blundering soldier entirely, he turned to talk to Flik. "What's on your mind this morning?"

Flik watched for a moment as the soldier in the obstacle course tripped over a log at knee height. "Leona says you talked to our three guests this morning. Mind telling me what about?"

Viktor shrugged; the soldier, having recovered his feet, was now running across a series of planks. Sadly, one of the planks was whisked out from under his feet and he ended up falling back first into the mud. "Yeah, I told them to go and try to find some recruits for the mercenaries."

Flik sighed; the soldier, getting up again, was now trying his best to navigate a series of empty crates. Alas, about halfway through, his left foot caught one of them and, arms wind-milling, the soldier crashed through the remainder, shattering a few of them. "We've already got a number of men working on recruiting. I don't see the need for those three to do that sort of work. I don't even think they're qualified."

"But that's the point," Viktor replied. The soldier, having returned to the bludgeons, promptly got bludgeoned in the stomach, causing him to stagger backwards a few steps and vomit loudly onto the ground. "They won't be looking for typical run of the mill mercenary fodder; the people they recruit will be unique- each one worth a hundred men."

Flik rolled his eyes. "You think they'll be safe, running through a potential war zone with no escort?" The soldier, unsteadily staggering around, absorbed another bludgeon to the back of the head, depositing him onto the turf, again.

"They're pretty resourceful. They managed to lead us on a merry chase all the way to Highland and back. Besides, the war's going to be up near Muse. Nothing's going to happen down here." Battered, bruised, and desperate, the soldier managed to crawl underneath the bludgeons.

At his side, Flik's right hand started grasping reflexively, as if he were trying to reach for a point. "I just wish you'd tell me about these things before you go off and do them. Your impetuosity is going to get someone hurt someday." Having navigated his great bane, the soldier stood up, sprinted towards the finish, and promptly fell into a pit of water.

Viktor reached out and put his hand on Flik's right shoulder. "Just think of all the new recruits they'll bring in. Everything will turn out fine." The soldier managed to scramble up the far side of the pit, lunging with every ounce of his remaining strength towards the goal line. "Take it easy and, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to the training." The soldier collapsed across the finish, to a smattering of applause from the men.

Flik walked back towards the main building; there wasn't much point in continuing the discussion anyway. Behind him, he could hear Viktor yelling, "Come on, you tripped every obstacle in the course, some in ways I've never even seen before, and you're dead at least six times over. Are your eyeballs just painted on for show? Ah, here, let me do the course, again. And this time, all of you better pay attention." Well, Flik decided, he'd just have to wait and see what Riou, Jowy, and Nanami turned up.

He didn't have to wait long. Coming down to Leona's bar the next morning, his eyes were assaulted by the presence of a large, unkempt man sitting at one of the tables, leaning back in his chair, sandaled feet propped up all the way to the other edge of the table. A loose blue robe hung on his frame, open to reveal that his abdomen was wrapped with yellow tape. He was also wearing yellow shorts, for modesty's sake. His sword, a huge, three foot hunk of metal, was leaning against another chair. A small mountain of empty rice bowls sat between his legs, on the table.

Noting Flik's presence as he approached, the stranger belched and said, "Hey, mind getting me another bowl of rice?"

Flik's eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"

The stranger shifted his position slightly, smiling lazily. "The name's Rikimaru." He reached out and snagged Flik's hand in a powerful handshake. "I entered Master Riou's service yesterday, and he told me to wait back at this fort, so here I am."

The words "Master Riou" bounced ominously around in Flik's head for a moment, but he shook free of the distraction and asked, "What is it, exactly, that you specialize in?"

"Swordsman and bodyguard by trade. Not quite used to this whole "organized" thing myself, but I'll stay out of the way."

Flik smiled. "Really. Care to demonstrate your skills?" He eyed the big man's huge cleaver of a sword. "With practice weapons, of course."

Rikimaru guffawed. "Against you, alone? I'd eat you up. Why don't you send about ten of your best men at me, and I'll put on a show."

Minutes later, and outside, the big man did put on quite a show. Towering over the soldiers who came at him, Flik could see that he was perhaps even taller than Viktor, if not as wide. With the practice sword in hand, he conked the closest soldier into the ground, stepped to one side, and, without visible effort, swept two more soldiers off their feet. The remaining seven all hesitated, which was a mistake, as Rikimaru rushed in and clobbered three more down, one with a well placed punch.

Flik had seen enough. Grabbing one of the wooden practice swords from a dazed soldier, he charged right into the action. Rikimaru saw him coming, swinging his own practice weapon in a broad arc, at Flik's eye level. Flik neatly ducked under it and cracked his own weapon down on the elbow of Rikimaru's sword arm. Shrugging the blow off, Rikimaru attempted to shoulder charge Flik, who deftly stepped aside and slapped the bigger man across the back of his legs. They turned and faced each other, Rikimaru slowly rotating his elbow to work out the pain. Flik lunged in, trying to knock the weapon from his opponent's hand. Rikimaru also rushed forward, left arm reaching to try and grapple with Flik. Calmly changing tactics, Flik turned sideways to his opponent's rush and, legs buckling slightly under the larger man's weight, leveraged Rikimaru's motion over his shoulders and into a body slam.

On the ground, Rikimaru started to alternate between coughs and laughs. Flik shook his head, trying to clear the little stars that were dancing in his vision. Then remembering the fight, he managed to turn his practice weapon on his fallen opponent.

"Yield," Flik commanded.

Rikimaru was too busy laughing to respond. Finally he choked out, "You failed to mention that you're Warrior Village trained. I guess that's what I get for assuming you were just an aristocratic dandy from Toran."

Flik decided to take that as Rikimaru's surrender and casually flipped the practice weapon back in the direction of one of the soldiers. Then he said, "It seems that you are as strong as your bluster merits. Still, could you ask Riou to tell other new recruits to speak to Leona the bartender, first? It'd make things a lot easier for me." Then he turned to walk back into the main building.

From behind, Flik heard, "Can do. But, if you had let me use my Onimaru, I'd have had you for breakfast."


	7. Chapter 7 Riou's Recruits

**Chapter 7- Riou's Recruits**

Next morning, as the sun was rising from behind a bank of clouds and Flik had just finished pulling on his pants, there was a knock at the door of his room. Heedless of his half-dressed state, Flik walked over and opened the door, asking, "Yes?"

Instantly he was set upon by a furry mass of little black eyes and great gaping teeth that was just about the size of his own head. Flik swung up his arms to ward the blow and was rewarded with a sharp pain on the right wrist as the…thing clamped its mouth down. From the door, Flik heard a girl shout, "NO, Bonaparte! BAD, Bonaparte!" A young girl with cascading brown hair stepped into view. She was wearing a very large, white beret and an almost immodestly short blue dress with cut-out shoulders. She reached out and grabbed the…Bonaparte from behind and started tugging. Setting his feet, Flik braced himself the other way and, with a giant popping noise, Bonaparte finally released its death grip on Flik's arm. Suddenly free, Flik staggered backwards across the room and thumped his back on the post of his bed, collapsing onto the floor.

With a concerned gasp, the girl flew across the room to examine Flik's injured arm. Holding his slightly bloodied hand and looking up at him with her huge brown eyes, she said, "I'm so sorry, my Bonaparte is usually so gentle with strangers. He must be in a bad mood this morning." Bonaparte meanwhile trotted over to the lowest shelf of the bookcase and started gnawing on a book.

Flik, suddenly blushing, managed to blurt out a cogent, "Eh?" Carefully, he tried to reach around the girl with his left arm, attempting to get at the rest of his clothes. She however jumped to her feet, rushing over to the rescue of Flik's books. Flik took the moment to stuff himself awkwardly into his yellow shirt, while listening to the girl scold Bonaparte. Getting his head clear, he saw the girl holding Bonaparte with one hand, while poking the thing in one of its six eyes. Then he noted exactly which book Bonaparte was chewing on. It was the diary of his years with Odessa!

With a strangled groan, he launched himself across the room, upending the table, only to get smacked in the forehead by the diary as Bonaparte spat it away. It dropped onto his bed, and Flik grabbed it up, cradling it close to his chest.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr. Flik. I don't know what's come over Bonaparte today. He's usually such a nice Bonaparte."

Flik looked up at the girl across the room. She was now holding Bonaparte with both hands, though seemingly oblivious to the latter's efforts to scramble away. With a resigned sigh, Flik asked, "Who are you? And what has brought you up to my room this morning?"

The girl smiled, which made it ever so difficult for Flik to be annoyed. "I'm Millie and this," she thrust forward Bonaparte, who greeted Flik by trying to worm his way out of Millie's arms to rip off his nose, "is Bonaparte, isn't he cute?"

The blood from Flik's injured wrist was now dripping down his fingers and splattering onto the floor in small droplets. He could only think to reply, "Um…"

Luckily, Millie was quite willing to talk right through him. "Riou helped me find Bonaparte when he was lost, yesterday, so I've decided to tag along with him and help him out. That nice lady, Leona, said I'd make a perfect messenger and told me to come up to announce that I'd joined. Oh, and that archer Kinnison and his pet doggie, Shiro, they also joined. Isn't that great?"

Flik massaged his aching forehead. "Yeah, that's great," he answered, noncommittally. It seemed that Riou was a master of finding both people and trouble. Flik sighed. Why did it feel like his whole destiny was suddenly slipping out of his hands?

"Um…Mr. Flik?" Millie queried, in a slightly less exuberant voice. She had stepped a little closer to him. He suddenly gulped. "Your hair is a mess, and your arm is still bleeding," she continued.

Flik suddenly sprang to his feet and, as politely as he was able, hustled the effusive girl to the door. "Yes, thank you very much. Why don't you go back to Leona, now, okay?" He managed to shut the door before she managed to answer, sliding down into a relieved heap.

Some time later, after bandaging his wrist and fixing his hair, Flik walked out to the grounds in front of the main building. Looking around, he found the practice yard to be strangely empty. Wondering where everyone was, his curiosity was piqued when he sudden cheer rose up from the archery range. Sprinting over, Flik found an immense crowd, maybe everyone in the fort, was clustered around one archer. Muscling through the crowd, he heard snatches of conversation.

"-That's seven in a row. This guy's amazing."

"-One of Master Riou's companions, along with the big guy and the cute girl."

Finally shouldering his way through to the front, Flik attempted to get a good look at this archer. However, he was greeted by the form of a huge white growling wolf. Only the fact that the wolf had a blue cloth tied around his front left leg distinguished it from any other wolf.

Flik was at the point of drawing his sword when a calm voice spoke up, "Down Shiro, down. This man's a friend of Master Riou." The wolf let out an ear-splitting howl, but subsided, allowing Flik a good view of the archer. He was a young man with shaggy brown hair and long sideburns. He was wearing a yellow coat, pale blue tunic, and cream colored pants. A long, red scarf was wound about his neck and trailed over one shoulder, dangling almost to the ground. Grabbing another arrow from his quiver, he carefully drew back his simple bow and, almost casually, released the arrow. It flew towards one of the more distant targets, almost four hundred feet away, hitting with an audible thud. Almost immediately, one of the people at the far end of the course ran out to check, waving his arms vigorously after a quick inspection.

"Another bulls-eye," someone in the crowd cried. "That's eight in a row!" People started clapping and Flik found that he too had begun to clap.

"You must be Kinnison," Flik said, stepping forward.

"Yes," Kinnison replied, while waiting for the men to prepare the target, once again.

"What will you be doing for us, besides your excellent archery?" Flik asked, trying to provoke a conversation. Kinnison however stoically ignored him, focusing once again on the target down range. With practiced expertise, he fired another arrow, which was promptly noted as another bulls-eye.

"Shiro and I, we know our way around forests, so I guess we'd make excellent scouts. We could guide men to ambush positions. Anything to stop Highland." He prepared another arrow.

Flik stepped back, slightly discomforted by Kinnison's intensity. "Well, I'll just leave you in the care of Riou. I hope you do well." With that, Flik turned and walked away. The resounding cheer of the crowd only served to confirm the result of Kinnison's next shot.

The remainder of the day went by slowly enough. It began to rain during the afternoon and this continued through the night. The next morning though, the day dawned clear, though the ground had been turned into a soupy muck. Flik led some of the horse archers out on a quick patrol, returning just after noon. Leona was busy serving a line of hungry soldiers from a vat of bubbling rice, but she motioned Flik over when he entered.

"A strange man came through about five minutes ago, heading upstairs. He may be one of Riou's recruits. I sent Millie up to find out, but you may want to see for yourself."

Flik nodded. "Thanks." Walking up the stairs, he gradually became aware of an argument in progress. Millie seemed to be upset with the stranger.

"You can't just barge in here and throw your stuff in this room. It belongs to-"

"Tut!" said the stranger, who had a melodious, if somewhat effeminate voice. "The very first thing that you'll need to do is change the bedding. Ugh, those colors don't suit me at all, and change the drapes, while you're at it. Let's see…oh, that bookcase must go and doesn't this place have something a little more ornate to serve as a table?"

By this time, Flik had arrived at the doorway of his room. Millie, Bonaparte in tow, was standing to the side of the door, while the extravagant newcomer held forth about the changes that he required. He almost seemed to dance around the room, his cream colored headdress and cloak swirling about, revealing that he appeared to be wearing a long, purple gown. His brown hair was shoulder length and curled in towards his face. Flik felt rather put off right from the first glance.

Meanwhile Millie looked up and noticed Flik in the doorway. "Ah, you're here, Mr. Flik. Now you can tell this fruitcake to get out of your room."

The fruitcake in question was busy declaiming on the need of a large bowl of fruit to go on his imaginary ornate table. He only became aware of Flik's presence when Flik stepped into the room and grabbed one of his outstretched arms. "Ah, yes, the manservant. Well, if you could just change the sheets, you know, to something…wine red, say. And I want the drapes to be canary yellow. And you can just throw out that ugly bookcase, but I do hope that you've got a slightly better table for me. Now, chop-chop and hurry along, my good man."

Flik tried very hard to keep his voice from hissing. "Who…are…you?"

The stranger smiled, seemingly oblivious to Flik's tone. "My name is Zamza, originator and expert in the use of Fire Dragon magic, here by Master Riou's request to become magic instructor to this merry band of…whatever it was again. Now, are you going to change those drapes, or not?"

From behind him, he heard Millie giggle. Flik's right hand clenched as he imagined wringing Zamza's neck. Instead, he replied, calmer than he felt, "I believe that there is some sort of mistake. This isn't the room that you want." Inspiration shot through Flik's head like a bolt of lightning. "Really, I couldn't imagine that you'd wish for a room this small."

Zamza frowned, apparently thinking this through. "You are quite right. Somebody of my greatness would certainly deserve a room at least twice this size."

"Absolutely," Flik concurred, grinning. "Why don't I show you a much better room?" Without further ado, Flik led Zamza outside and across the practice field, in the general direction of one of the barracks. He tried to suppress a chuckle as he noted Zamza looking warily at the mud and gathering his robe slightly. Arriving at the first barrack building, Flik entered and found the senior sergeant on duty, Karl, at his desk.

"Karl," Flik began, without preamble, "this man is here by Riou's invitation. Find him a spot, preferably as far from everybody as you can make it. Try not to overwhelm him too much." Looking back at Zamza, Flik saw that the mage appeared to be sizing up both wings of the building.

"Barracks are only half-full, sir. I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you." Flik turned and walked out, not wishing to see how Karl would deal with the situation.

The next day was quiet, almost ominously so. Flik found himself fretting about the lack of a response from Muse, and he proceeded through his portion of the training irritably, snapping at the men for slight offenses. It didn't help things that late in the day the sky clouded up again and it began to precipitate, a fine drizzle that hung in the air. Worse yet, after dinner Flik sat down to a very depressing meeting with the senior sergeants.

Edrick, the sergeant in charge of finances, began the meeting with, "Commander, things are looking pretty bleak on the financial side. Muse hasn't sent any money in a month. I'm starting to wonder if they didn't vote to disband us and just forgot to send a messenger."

"What can we do about it, Edrick?" Flik asked.

"Sir, we need money. Either that, or we put the men on half-pay, or dismiss half the men. Otherwise, we have barely enough money to last two months, if we hold expenses to the bare minimum."

In his stomach, Flik felt the contents of dinner trying to escape. "Fine, I'll personally ride for Muse in the morning. Maybe I can squeeze a little more potch out of them." The rest of the meeting went downhill from there. Each of the sergeants had problems to report: the training wasn't going as well as they hoped, supplies were short, and the recruiting drive seemed to be lethargic. By the end, Flik was rubbing his temples. It was obvious that the mercenaries were in little condition to fight a major battle. When the last man had finished speaking, Flik sighed and said, "There's little enough that we can do about all of this now. If I can get enough potch out of Muse, some of our problems will go away. Anyway, thank you for your reports, gentlemen. I bid you all a good night."

The meeting adjourned, Flik slouched off to bed. The rain had picked up, drumming steadily on the roof of the building. To Flik, it also felt as if it were drumming on the inside of his head. Little chills raced up and down his body. The hallway seemed to spin in his vision and he was suddenly very nauseous.

Closing the door to his room, he leaned back and tried to steady himself. The darkness was complete, but also a blessed relief. For a few moments, he felt and listened to his heart racing, beating loudly in his ears. He could not remember the last time he had felt this bad. What had caused it, he wondered? Maybe it was a touch of Senan flu?

He pushed back from the door and, pausing only to detach his cape, collapsed into his bed: boots, sword, and all.

"Odessa…Odessa!" Flik coughed, gagging on thick smoke. Off to his right, he could dimly make out the reddish haze of something burning. He tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword and pulled his shield close towards his chest, seeking reassurance in their weight. Then he plunged in towards the fire.

It was a village that was burning, flames hungrily licking at the frames of wooden houses. Shadows of people flitted in and out of the smoke and darkness between the flames. Flik took a step backwards, feeling sweat breaking out on his exposed skin. He looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of Odessa. A red cape seemed to swirl in the smoke over towards one house and Flik bolted towards it, yelling to catch its attention. The figure turned, not Odessa, but a soldier clad in sable mail with a sword at the ready, the ragged red cape fluttering out behind.

Flik lunged to the attack, swinging up his shield to deflect his opponent's sword while stabbing out with his own. Neither sword nor shield met anything corporeal, and Flik stumbled through an image of smoke and flame. White sparks snapped at his face, little points of pain on his cheek. He turned, trying to catch his bearing. Another soldier of smoke and fire was approaching, sword raised up over its head. Reflexively, Flik lashed out with his sword, but the smoke around him twined about his arms, hindering his efforts as though it were substantial. A cold sweat suddenly broke out all over his body as, with a desperate effort, Flik struggled to break his shield arm free and block the descending ebony blade.

The sound of wood splintering and a sharp pain in his left wrist shattered the image. He was falling through darkness, but only for a moment, as he landed back first onto the floor. He lay there for a moment, heart hammering in his chest, and tried to gather his thoughts. He was soaked in sweat and wrapped up in his own blankets. The rain beating on the roof and the wooden floor at his back helped him to orient his position, as he worked his way out of the tangle of his bedding.

Just as he had finished that, there was a knock at his door. "Mr. Flik, are you awake?" The voice was Millie's. He groaned, trying to work out an answer. Luckily, the noise was answer enough. "Sir Viktor is waiting in the planning room, something important has come up."

That propelled Flik to full wakefulness. His previous sickness had departed with the sweat, and he was now ravenously hungry. "Thank you. Could you ask Leona to send up a bowl of the leftover stew, please?"

"Sure thing, Mr. Flik." He listened to Millie's bouncy footsteps fading. Then, after testing his hurt wrist, he picked up the piece of the headboard that he'd inadvertently smashed and placed it on the table. For a moment, he wondered about the state of his hair, but dismissed that and walked from the room.

In the planning room, Viktor greeted him with a cheery "You look awful, Flik."

Flik dismissed the comment, coming around to stand next to Viktor at the far side of the map table. "What's this emergency that's rousted me out of bed?" he asked.

Viktor shrugged. "I don't know, but Riou and his company have just returned, apparently with important information."

Flik rubbed at his hurt wrist, wondering just how long he'd have to wait. The answer came immediately, as the door swung open to admit four waterlogged messengers. Three of them were Riou, Jowy, and Nanami, and the fourth…Flik blinked in surprise.

Viktor smiled broadly. "Well look at this; the little bookworm's all grown up." He stepped around the table and swept the newcomer, or rather, old friend, up into a crushing bear hug.

Apple, for who else could it be with that short brown hair and huge round glasses, protested loudly. "Stop that, you big oaf!" Viktor released her and she stepped back, straightening out her yellow coat. Then she continued her tirade. "How dare you! Sneaking off like that at Gregminster Castle. We all thought you were dead and now I find you here playing King of the Mercenaries. Don't you realize it's been two years and you haven't sent so much as a letter?"

Flik's thoughts jumped back to two years ago. At that time, Apple had been very much a young girl, trailing along in the wake of her mentor, the strategist Mathiu Silverberg. Two years had changed much. No longer a young girl, that time had given her the subtle, graceful curves of a woman. Her glare, however, was just as fiery as two years ago, and now it turned towards Flik. "Well, what do you have to say for yourselves?" She tapped the toe of one of her boots -which matched the color of her coat- impatiently.

Flik and Viktor exchanged worried looks. Then Flik worked up his courage, saying, "You told me you were going to write the letters, Viktor." Apple turned to fix her stare back on Viktor. Viktor, knowing full well that neither of them had ever thought about the need for letters, shot Flik an aggrieved look. Riou sniggered slightly, as if reading their thoughts. Nanami, still wet from the rain, sneezed lightly. Jowy looked as though he was already asleep on his feet.

Apple fidgeted with her coat, even though it was perfectly straight. "Never mind, we have much more important things to discuss." She took a breath before continuing. "The Highland Army has attacked and burned Toto Village to the ground."

Flik, feeling his knees beginning to buckle, reached out and steadied himself on the table. "Are you sure of this?" he asked, lamely.

"I saw the destruction with my own eyes," Apple answered. "As did Riou and his friends. This little girl Pilika is the only survivor." Flik noted the little girl he had not seen before, with brown hair and a pink dress, one hand clutching at a teddy bear, while the other held onto the back of Jowy's shirt.

Viktor's smile had disappeared, replaced with a frown. He looked towards Riou and Nanami, seeing their confirming nods. The room was silent for a moment before he finally spoke. "This is far more than mere border skirmishing. What is he up to?"

Again Apple had the answer. "It's obviously an invasion. I think he means to take and hold as much of Muse, and maybe even of the whole Jowston Alliance, as he can. And you can be sure that he won't ignore this fort."

Viktor pounded the table in frustration. "An invasion, just like that? What about the cease-fire? What about peace? I can't believe that all of Highland is ready to back him in an all out war."

Apple shook her head. "He's set it up well. That fake massacre of the Unicorn Brigade has all of Highland screaming for a war of vengeance. It'll be a while before cooler heads prevail. Long enough for Luca Blight to do some serious damage, if we're not careful."

That sobering news brought silence. Viktor sighed and turned to address the children. "Riou, Jowy, thank you for bringing us this news. We have some important strategy to discuss, but you should all get some rest now."

Neither Riou, Jowy, or Nanami protested the dismissal; they were far too wet and tired to do much more than slouch out the door. Apple, still dripping water, pulled over one of the chairs in the room and sank down into it, an exhausted sigh escaping her lips. Moments later, Millie knocked on the door and came in, bearing a bowl of savory stew. Flik's stomach growled, but before he could take even a step, Apple had leapt up and taken the stew right out of Millie's hands. It was all he could do to keep the disappointment off his face as Apple began to ravenously slurp the stew down.

"Mmm…It's amazing what tastes good when you haven't had anything to eat for a day or so," Apple said, after placing the now empty bowl on the table.

Flik, who had been studying the map, now asked, "How did he get to Toto? He certainly didn't come down North Sparrow Pass."

Apple stood up, regarding the map, as well. "No, he didn't. Instead, he marched out of Fort Retto, here," she pointed to a spot just across the northern border of Muse, "and pushed south all the way across Muse Principality to take Toto from the north."

Astonished, Viktor blurted out, "From the north! But certainly forces from Muse tried to stop them?"

Apple shook her head. "No, after one skirmish at the border, they fell back to Muse City, thinking that the capital would be the target."

"This isn't good," Flik commented. "Do you know anything about their numbers?"

"At least ten thousand," Apple answered, tersely. "I saw the banners of Lord Solon Jhee's Second Army, Lord Kiba Windamier's Third Army, and some of Prince Luca's White Wolves."

Flik's eyes unfocused, momentarily. "Ten thousand…we don't have the men to stand against a field army."

"No, you don't." Apple smiled. "But, if we can hold out against them for a couple of days, I think I have a plan that might defeat them."

Both Viktor and Flik looked at her, dumbstruck. Finally, Flik spluttered, "You have a plan? I mean-"

She glared in response. "I studied under Master Mathiu Silverberg, the greatest military mind of this or any other age! Of course I learned something from him. Did you think that I was just following him around like a love struck little girl?"

Actually, that thought had crossed Flik's mind, more than once, during their time in the Liberation Army two years ago. To preempt any more tirades out of Apple, he said, "I'm sorry. Why don't you tell us about the plan?"

For a moment, it looked as though Apple would continue berating them, but finally she nodded and gestured towards the map. "This plan is all about supply. Luca Blight, having crossed fifty miles of Muse territory to get to Toto, is now operating outside of his supply range. Even with foraging, he'll only be able to keep this army in the field for a few more days before he'll be in serious need of more food."

"This doesn't help us much," Flik interrupted. "He'll be able to get supplies down North Sparrow Pass."

"Please," Apple chided, "wait until I'm done before you raise objections. Continuing: because of the supply situation and his own tendencies, I expect Luca Blight to be aggressive. He'll probably attack Ryube and this fortress as soon as he can march his army down here. This gives us an opportunity. An army, marching in from Muse, through Toto, would be able to get in between Luca's army and North Sparrow Pass, cutting off any hope of supply from that route. He'd be trapped here, in East Muse, and his army would disintegrate from the lack of food. It's perfect!" She clapped her hands together.

"Where will you find this Muse general that'd be willing to lead his army in such a bold way?" Viktor asked. "Most of the generals that I know like to squat behind stone walls, rather than fight."

Apple nodded, an answer already at hand. "General Hauser and his army have just returned from the Tinto-Grassland border. I am sure that if we could get a messenger to him, he would understand this plan."

"Yes," Viktor replied, slowly. "He has a good reputation, and he's not from Jowston originally, so he'd have to be an excellent commander to get an army."

"There's still this problem of us holding them off long enough for Hauser to get into position," Flik said. "I'm not really sure that we can do it."

"Well…that is a problem," Apple conceded.

"What if we use the Fire Spears?" Viktor suddenly jumped in, banging his fist down on the table. "We've been saving them for a moment like this."

"You have Fire Spears?" Apple asked, wonderingly.

"Viktor…" Flik warned, knowing the condition of said spears.

Viktor was already walking towards the door. "Down in the basement, we've got hundreds of them. We'll burn the Highland Army all the way back to Kyaro!"


	8. Chapter 8 An Apple a Day

**Chapter 8- An Apple a Day Keeps Highland at Bay**

"This," Viktor grabbed a spear from the rack, "is a Fire Spear!"

Riou, Jowy, and Nanami looked on raptly as Viktor held the spear out for all to see. At first glance, it didn't appear much different than a normal spear. Flik, though, had seen them in battle and knew that any one spear could generate a stream of fire out almost one hundred yards in front of the holder.

The mention of Fire Spears always brought a twinge of pain to his heart. Odessa had spent much of her personal fortune researching documents from the Fire Bringer War that mentioned the use of Fire Spears. Her death had come just after the fruition of those plans, indeed, at the end of the mission to deliver the plans to the secret factory. Yet, those spears had ultimately been instrumental in the defeat of Teo McDohl's Iron Cavalry during the Toran Liberation War.

"Unfortunately, they're rusted and useless to us," Viktor concluded.

"And we all know who's fault that is," Flik muttered, just loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

"Hey!" Viktor slammed the spear down onto the table and, knowing full well that he had promised several times to see to the maintenance of the spears, shot Flik an aggrieved look.

"Enough!" Apple interjected, and then gestured for Viktor to continue. Apple, of course, had already chewed both of them out for their failure to keep the Fire Spears maintained.

Viktor continued. "We need you to find a man called Tsai of the Divine Spear who should be able to fix the Fire Spears so that we can defend the fort. Will you help us?"

Flik could almost see Riou rolling his eyes and wouldn't have blamed him if he had said "no." Riou, modestly enough, answered, "Of course."

Flik walked around the table, carrying a bag of money. "Good. This," he handed the bag to Riou, "is two thousand potch. That will be his payment, so don't spend it on the way, okay."

Apple stood up from her chair. "You'll find Tsai in the forest east of Ryube. Also, don't dawdle, as the Highland Army is likely to push south as quickly as they can." She smiled. "Good luck."

After they left, she immediately collapsed back into her chair. Viktor, having appropriated the other chair, also sat down, leaving Flik chairless. Soft morning light filled the room through the window and the sky beyond was blue and cloudless. Apple closed her eyes and, given the serene look on her face, almost seemed to fall asleep.

"You okay?" Flik asked, after she said nothing for a few minutes.

She sprang upright. "Yes, yes. Just…collecting my thoughts. Viktor, I need you to collect some trustworthy men, we're going to move the strongbox to a new location."

Viktor frowned. "You think we'll lose the fort, even with the Fire Spears?"

"Better safe than sorry," Apple answered, crisply.

The two of them departed. Flik almost immediately jumped into a free chair, relaxing out his stiff legs. He'd had only a moment's respite, though, before he realized that he had his own duties to attend to. Regretfully, he got out of the chair and left the room.

As each hour passed, the day brought more and more signs of Highland's advance. Refugees, at first a trickle and then a steady flow, began to pour into the area of the fort, obviously seeking protection under the arms of Muse. But rapidly they began to overwhelm the fort, and Flik had to detail men to get them organized into a camp just outside the walls. The refugees also ended the recruiting shortage, as Flik found himself nearly inundated by eager men, both young and old, who were prepared to do almost anything to get their vengeance.

In the afternoon, the winds shifted around out of the north, bringing with them a pall of smoke. Scouts confirmed the obvious, that Highland was burning every farm and field that their forces could reach, slowly turning a large swath of East Muse into an ashen wasteland. Evening brought a red sky not only to the west, but also from the east. Flik spurred the scouts out, riding towards Ryube, only to discover the White Wolves already there. Dejectedly, the scouts herded the few escapees towards the fort, listening to their stories of massacre and atrocity all the way back.

The red glare of the burning town continued into the rising of the evening dark. The two moons, nearly touching as both waxed towards half full, stood sentinel over the flames, high in the night sky. The night brought better news than the day when Riou's company returned with Tsai. Flik, Viktor, and Apple, along with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami watched in the planning room as he examined a rack of rusted Fire Spears.

His eyes seemed to be in a perpetual squint as he ran his fingers up and down the carefully banded wood and iron of the seven-foot haft. "Tsk, tsk." His voice was subdued, but full of professional authority. "It is a terrible shame to see such fine weapons so poorly treated."

"Gah!" Viktor spat, "blame me for everything."

Tsai's head turned slightly at Viktor's comment, but then swung back to continue the examination. Reverently, he placed the spear back into its place on the rack before he stood up and, sandaled feet slapping the floor, took a few measured steps back. He bowed his head, as if in thought, revealing that his short black hair had been pulled back into a little bun, on which sat a small red cap.

After several moments, Flik felt his patience begin to wear. "Can you help us?" he prompted.

As if deliberately ignoring him, Tsai tugged at the green smock he wore over his long yellow tunic. He shook his head and sighed. "I retired to Ryube just to avoid situations like this and now you ask me to make weapons of war again." He was not a small man, indeed, he was fairly powerfully muscled, but he did not project his size well. He turned to squint directly at Flik. "I would say 'no', but after witnessing the things that I saw today, how can I not say 'yes' and help you stop this madman?"

Flik worked this out in his head. "This means that you'll help us, right? Thank you, I assure you that you will be well rewarded."

Tsai shook his head emphatically. "I don't care about any monetary reward. My reward will be peace and never again having to look on while helpless men and women are butchered like hogs. Now, if you'll excuse me, there is so very little time and I must get started." He nodded and walked quickly from the room to begin the task.

Viktor now turned to face Riou, Jowy, and Nanami. "You three deserve thanks, too, for bringing Tsai to us. Now, you should go and pack your things, for tomorrow I'm sending you off to Muse, out of harm's way."

This got an immediate reaction. Jowy stepped forward, shouting, "I want to stop Highland, too. We want to help, isn't that right, Riou?"

The room became very still as all eyes turned towards that particular young man. Somehow, in some unconscious part of his head, Flik understood that the wheels of destiny had ground to a halt, waiting for Riou to make his choice. It was terribly unnerving.

Riou stepped forward, up next to Jowy, nodding almost imperceptibly as he did so. "I want to fight by your side."

Nanami frowned slightly, Apple sighed in her chair, and Viktor's mouth fell open, sputtering on a suitable response. Flik forestalled any of them, though, stepping forward and unsheathing his sword. "I'll tell you what," he began. "If you can so much as touch me in a duel, I'll declare you fit to fight alongside us."

"Flik, what are you playing at?" Viktor asked, eyes flitting back and forth between Flik and Riou.

Nanami seemed about to speak, but Flik overrode her. "Do you agree?"

In answer, Riou's hands slipped down to his tonfar, readying them for battle. Jowy and Nanami backed away towards the wall where Apple sat, opening a space for the duel. Flik felt his breathing hasten as he brought the point of his sword up. He took one step forward, attempting to provoke a move.

Riou closed the intervening space with one tremendous leap, bearing down on Flik almost before he realized what was happening. Shifting to a two-handed stance, Flik's arms vibrated as he warded off Riou's first two blows with his sword. He pushed forward, trying to knock Riou off balance, but the boy nimbly backstepped away and sprang back into the attack almost as soon as his back foot touched the wooden floor. Again on the defensive, Flik reversed his grip, pointing the blade towards the ground, so that he took the next two blows just below the cross guard of his blade. Using his size, Flik broke the resulting stalemate, shoving Riou backwards. Following through, he swung his sword low, trying to sweep Riou off his feet and finish the fight. Instead, Riou neatly flipped away, balancing for a moment on his two tonfar, and then flipped back up onto his feet, sprinting to attack Flik as soon as his feet touched down.

Instinctively Flik brought the point of his sword forward, legs tensing to lunge towards the charging Riou. Then Flik faltered. Something in Riou's eyes -not desperation, but utter calmness- told him that the youth would continue the attack, heedless of the risk of injury, even to the point of death. Riou was prepared to risk everything, and Flik was not prepared to make him pay that price. Instead, he allowed Riou to swat the point of the blade away with his left tonfar. Then, turning his shoulder slightly, Flik stepped forward into a collision.

Unprepared, Riou caught Flik's shoulder hard on his sternum, sweeping his feet off the floor. However, this did not stop Riou's right tonfar from making contact with Flik's ribcage. Ignoring the sudden pain, he bashed Riou onto the floor, knocking him hard against the map table, spilling lead figurines all over the floor. Then, just for completeness sake, he pulled his sword around and tapped the flat of the blade lightly against Riou's neck. Only after that did he acknowledge the bruise forming on his right side, rubbing his free hand against it. Riou looked up imploringly at Flik.

Flik gritted his teeth as other parts of his abused body started hurting. "He's passed the test; he can join us."

Viktor frowned at first, but suddenly burst out laughing. "Are you sure you didn't go easy on him? You're going soft, Flik."

"I didn't go easy on him, Viktor. He can fight."

Viktor regarded Riou carefully as the boy got back on to his feet and dusted himself off. To Flik's consternation, Riou looked no more winded than if he'd just come back from an evening walk. Finally, Viktor said, "All right, I'll give you a company and we'll see what you can do. For now, you should go to bed; we'll all have a long day tomorrow."

After they had left, Apple stirred in her chair and said, "Are you really going to let them fight? What if they get into trouble?"

Viktor shrugged his shoulders. "I'll assign them the unit with the best sergeants. That will cut down on some of the risks. As for the rest…well, we all know about how hard it is to keep young men out of trouble when they are set on finding it."

There was a moment of reflection as the three of them remembered the Toran Liberation War and Tir McDohl. Then Apple stood up. "I'm borrowing some of your men, Viktor. We'll dig some traps to thin their numbers and keep our flanks clear, hopefully." Without so much as waiting for Viktor's permission, she walked from the room.

Flik would've done so as well, but Viktor reached out and grabbed his shoulder. Flik turned back to look at his friend, who was glancing conspiratorially around the room. "What's up?" Flik asked.

"I need your help with something," Viktor whispered, which struck Flik as absurd, given that the room was empty. "Meet me on the balcony." With that, Viktor walked out of the room, all the while attempting to creep stealthily. Flik rolled his eyes, but walked to the front of the fort and the second story balcony. Whatever it was that Viktor wanted, no matter how silly it was, Flik knew that it would be important to him.

Stepping out into the night air Flik came face to face not with Viktor, but instead with the largest squirrel he'd ever seen. Well, it looked something like a squirrel, if squirrels wore little red capes, stood more than a foot tall on their hind legs, and wore little brown booties on their feet. Flik stared at it for a long moment, trying to decide whether to flee or draw his sword.

"Mukumuku! Mukumuku!" The squirrel -Mukumuku- turned towards the sound of the voice and, to Flik's astonishment, bounded into the air, gliding downwards. Cautiously he walked to the balcony railing and watched as Mukumuku settled into Nanami's arms. "There you are, you silly little boy," Nanami cooed as she rubbed its furry belly with one hand. Then she sat down on the steps leading out of the fort, almost directly under the balcony where Flik was standing. He heard her sigh. "Why did he go and join up like that? Doesn't he realize what would happen if something went wrong?"

Flik mused; did he already regret allowing Riou and Jowy to fight alongside them? No, that right had been earned, it was up to them to decide if the responsibility was too heavy.

"I'll just have to go along with him," Nanami continued. "He'll need his big sister to keep him out of trouble. And then, after this fight is over, we can all go away somewhere: me, my brother, Jowy and Pilika, too. We could all live on a farm, far, far away from all the wars and fighting. Wouldn't that be nice?" Flik sighed, as softly as he could. Once he, too, had dreamed of a quiet future, side by side with Odessa. That dream had died with her, swept away like her body on the tides of war. If there truly existed some place far from conflict, Flik had yet to find it. In the distance, he could still see the red glow of Ryube burning. He closed his eyes, letting a cool night's breeze play across his cheek.

"Potch for your thoughts," Viktor's voice suddenly blurted out, close at hand. Flik, startled back to awareness, surreptitiously looked back to see if Nanami was still there. She was not, apparently having departed while he had been lost in thought. Viktor waited, something folded under his crossed arms.

Half a dozen suitable responses bounced around in Flik's head, but he said, "Nothing important. Why'd you call me out here?"

Viktor tilted his head slightly, as if to suggest he knew more than it seemed. Then he unfurled the cloth that he'd had in his arms. "This. We need to display the fort's battle flag."

"Battle flag?" Flik squinted; in the darkness he could make out little more than some sort of animal's face. "Where did you get this?"

Viktor chuckled. "I made this myself. I'm more talented than I let on, you know? Now, take this end and we'll nail it into position."

Flik complied. There were worse things than humoring Viktor on this night, especially given the tragedy that the following day was sure to bring.

The following morning dawned overcast, but dry. The soldiers were still assembling by companies when Pohl returned with some of the scouts.

"The Highland Army is advancing this way! They left Ryube earlier this morning." A ripple of nervous anticipation spread through the assembled men. Flik watched silently as some of the more experienced sergeants moved among them, quashing any murmuring as they went. Viktor also seemed jumpy this morning, eyeing the new battle flag as it ruffled slightly in the breeze. At that moment, the doors to the main building opened and Riou, Jowy, and Nanami hurriedly walked out into the sunlight.

Apple, meanwhile, was calmly questioning Pohl. "What are their numbers? And did you find out what units they were?"

"They seemed to be only from Solon Jhee's Second Army," Pohl answered. "Maybe about five thousand men. It'll take them nearly four or five hours to get here."

"Hmm," Apple mused quietly. "Where are the White Wolves and Luca Blight?" For a moment, she looked utterly dazed.

"Is something wrong?" Flik asked, stepping up towards her.

"No, no," Apple replied, wiping away some sweat from her face. "I just wish that…well, no, what I wish is unimportant. We have to deal with the threat in front of us."

All of the conversation in the assembly area quieted as Tsai came in, leading several wagons full of Fire Spears. He sounded tired as he spoke, "The Fire Spears are ready, thanks to everyone who worked through the night to fix them."

Apple nodded and then addressed the soldiers. "Gentlemen, the Highland Army is now coming for us. In the past few days, they have taken and burned both Toto and Ryube, as well as destroyed countless farms along the way. They may very well seem invincible, but they are not! They are tired and far from their supplies. With one good push, we can bloody their noses and force them to move cautiously. Then we just hold until reinforcements from Muse arrive and trap them between us."

Flik nodded. She certainly seemed to have their attention. Hopefully, the men were thinking more about that one good push and not too much on the fact that they were going to be outnumbered almost five to one. Now he spoke. "If this fort falls, all of East Muse will fall with it. Remember what Highland did to Ryube and Toto. Look at those refugees who are crowded outside our very walls." He took a breath. "This battle must not be lost!"

The soldiers gave a hearty cheer, some of them even pumping their fists into the air. Viktor gestured towards Apple. "Okay Apple, explain the plan."

Apple cleared her throat. "The battle will take place outside the fort, about two miles to the north. Normally, we'd fight closer to the fort, but the refugee camp makes that impossible. Viktor will have the largest unit, eight companies of infantry, which he will take north to a slight rise that the scouts have identified as a worthwhile defensive position. The width between the forests there is about a thousand yards. It's tough, but with the Fire Spears, we should be able to hold it." Viktor shrugged; Apple turned to Flik. "Flik, you will take your two companies of horse around to the forests on Viktor's left flank; Kinnison will be your guide. Once there, you'll wait until Viktor's infantry is engaged and then launch a flanking attack. Riou's company will do the same on Viktor's right flank. Rikimaru is your guide." She looked towards Tsai. "Tsai, what is the situation with the Fire Spears?"

Tsai looked much the worse for having worked without a break through the whole night. He rubbed his hands together and said, "I've done what I could. We have about five hundred Fire Spears that should work as they are supposed to."

Flik frowned slightly, but Apple's face betrayed nothing as she continued, "Each man in Flik and Riou's companies should receive a spear. Viktor," she looked at him again, "you'll have to make do with the remainder. Are there any questions?"

Viktor, knowing better than to complain about the spear situation, asked, "What about a reserve? You're not leaving us with much of a margin of error should things go bad."

Apple shook her head. "We don't have much of a margin for error anyway. We have to put all of our efforts into stopping them here." That answer was little comfort to Flik.

Viktor, on the other hand, stepped forward to address the men. "You've heard the situation; we're outnumbered, so we have to give it our all. If we do that, then we can win and crush the Highland Army and bring peace back to Jowston. I swear, by the great lion that flies on our battle flag overhead, that we will win this war!" He was nearly roaring by the time he finished.

Flik looked up at said flag. There was certainly some…animal's face on it.

"That's a lion?" Apple asked.

"Huh?" a soldier from somewhere in the ranks offered.

The men began queuing up to receive their Fire Spears. Viktor strolled over in the general direction of Riou's company. Apple carefully sat down on the steps and began fanning herself.

As Flik walked towards her, he noticed how flushed her face was, as if she'd just run a marathon. "Are you okay?" he asked.

She pulled off her glasses and proceeded to clean them on her coat. "I'm fine," she replied, a little curtly. "Just a little faint, that's all." She adjusted the glasses back onto her face, pushing them up with one finger until they were comfortable.

"Well, be careful out there," Flik offered.

She smiled. "Don't worry about that. I don't intend to get any closer to the fighting than I have to. But, I hope you two will be careful. You're both so gung-ho about these sort of things; I expect that both of you will end up right where the fighting's the thickest."

Flik shrugged; he had no good answer to that. Viktor, meanwhile, was speaking with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami in his big, booming voice. "So, are you ready to go? You won't get a chance to go the bathroom again for quite some time." He directed this last comment mostly towards Nanami, who replied with an aggrieved "Hey!"

All Riou said was, "We're ready anytime."

A warm wind stirred the new leaves of the forest as Kinnison led Flik and his companies single file down a game trail. The white wolf Shiro darted in and out of the cover well ahead, causing some of the horses to whicker nervously whenever they caught his scent. Through breaks in the foliage off to the right, Flik could see Viktor's infantry marching into position. There was still no sign of the Highland Army, but that was expected, given that they were still more than an hour away.

Eventually, Kinnison halted and said softly, "This is the spot. Deploy the men from here, along the edge of the forest." Flik studied the area; there was nothing that set this particular stretch of forest apart from any other.

"Why here?" he asked.

"Any farther north and you'll start losing men to all the pits that were dug last night," Kinnison answered.

"Oh." Flik paused. "Are you going to be fighting alongside us?"

Kinnison shook his head. "I won't be able to keep up in a field battle. Besides, your horses don't really care much for Shiro. If any of the Highland soldiers do come into range of my bow, I will shoot them."

Flik nodded and set about organizing the men. A few of the men were sent forward, dismounted, to the edge of the forest to serve as scouts. The majority waited deeper in, alongside their horses. Flik went forward with the scouts to survey the field. He could see Viktor's infantry, off to the right, working on building a hurried earthen breastwork. Riou was, hopefully, already in position in the forests directly across from Flik.

After that, there was little to do but wait. Flik lay in the undergrowth and listened to the sound of a bee droning somewhere in the distance. The clouds rolled by overhead, without a break, and he spent a few moments worrying about the possibility of rain. Then he dismissed those thoughts; whatever would come, would come. Some of the men near by were speaking in hushed whispers, but Flik chose not to intrude on the conversation. Instead, he dozed off.

After an indeterminate amount of time, one of the scouts came and gently pushed Flik awake. He sat up, rifled through his hair, and listened as the scout said, "We've sighted the advance guard of the Highland Army. Both infantry and cavalry. The infantry's in a marching column, with cavalry on both wings."

"Fine. Keep them under observation." Flik jumped up to his feet and walked back towards the bulk of his forces. They seemed to already know what was coming as he returned, the four senior sergeants coming forward to meet him. "The enemy is coming; we'll face cavalry and then infantry. The plan will be to approach as closely as we dare and then use the Fire Spears to burn as much as we can. Since the enemy greatly outnumbers us, we'll have to keep a careful watch on our exposed flank, the left. Tarrance," Flik turned to the senior sergeant in question, "your half company will have that duty. You are to refuse the flank and hold the enemy out of our rear at all costs. Understand?"

"Sir, I do."

"Good. We'll bring the men forward to the edge of the forest now. Then we'll advance in open order towards the enemy at a trot on my signal. Then halt on the next signal and initiate a simultaneous attack by the Fire Spears on the third signal. Understand?"

He received nods from the sergeants.

"Right, then let's get this started."

As they were riding forward, some of the scouts came back with a further update. The enemy infantry, in the blue and white of Highland, appeared to be advancing into the fight without stopping to change from column to row. Coming to the edge of the forest, Flik paused while the rest of the men formed up. It was now about an hour past noon. Across the field, he could see that the cavalry closest to his position contained horse archers, who were peppering Viktor's lines with arrows. The column of infantry was mere minutes away from crashing into the defensive line.

He could wait no longer. Unsheathing his blade, he pointed it towards the enemy cavalry and started forward at a trot. He did not need to look back to see if the men were following, for he could hear the noise made by nearly two hundred horses as they began the advance. For the moment there was nothing to do but to continue the ride forward and wait as the enemy cavalry reacted to the move. Their reactions were good, Flik grudgingly conceded, as he watched the cavalry change their facing without any visible problems.

An arrow buzzed by ominously off to his left; Flik tightened his grip on the shield. Other arrows were landing along his line and he could hear the startled screams of suddenly wounded men. Those men who were now dead would give no signal, of course. Still, most of the Highland arrows were only finding the earth; the formation was too spread out for concentrated arrow attacks to do catastrophic damage.

At that moment, Viktor's infantry started to use their Fire Spears on the approaching Highland infantry. Great spurts of fire arced out from Viktor's lines, burying the head of the Highland column under a wave of flame. On the far side of the field, Flik could see some of Riou's men also using their Fire Spears. For his own part, Flik wished to approach just a little closer before using his own spears, the better to burn more of the Highland formation.

A ripple passed through the opposing horse archers; men turning to see the fiery carnage to their rear. The enemy commander, at this distance still little more than a silver haired man dressed in black and white, began issuing new orders. Flik swore; they were extending their lines, moving into a more open order in an attempt to minimize the damage. There was nothing for it but to attack, though he had hoped to be a little closer. He pulled his sword high above his head, yelling, "Halt! Ready the Fire Spears!" The men halted in a ragged line, pointing their spears towards the enemy lines. Flik gripped his sword, he would fight with no other weapons but that and his lightning magic.

"Fire Spears! Attack!"

Instantly Flik felt the heat of the closest of the Fire Spears on his face and he turned slightly at the brightness of the fire generated by more than one hundred spears. It roared through the air, splashing down in and around the blue and white Highland cavalry, obscuring them behind a great wall of flame and smoke. The fire spurting out of the spears died down; surely nothing had survived that attack.

A volley of arrows whistled through the air in answer. Up and down his line, Flik could hear the sickening impacts of those arrows on leather, flesh, and bone. He tightened his jaw against the screaming.

"Again! Fire Spears! Attack!"

The flames from the spears burned through the air again, heaping fire upon fire. Behind that awful roaring veil, Flik thought he could make out horrible wailing. Despite this, the opposing general continued to keep control of his men, as more arrows flew towards Flik, albeit in a ragged volley. Some of those arrows struck home, causing at least one of the fire spears to suddenly spew straight upwards in a towering fountain of yellow, orange, and red. The fire attack faltered as the mercenaries scattered, trying to dodge falling globlets of flame.

Flik rode down the line, carefully maneuvering between the fires, until he found the closest senior sergeant, Rossgard. He was sitting on his horse, wide-eyed in shock, with a burn mark down the leather on his left arm. Flik shook him harshly. When he was reasonably sure that Rossgard was paying attention, he yelled, "Rally your men twenty yards back! Hurry!" Rossgard nodded his understanding and heeled his horse off, yelling towards the nearest men. Flik hurried on towards the others, until the whole line was reformed away from the danger zone.

During the time he had paid scant attention to the threat of more arrows, realizing only belatedly that no further volleys had followed on the last one. He looked out across towards the Highland positions, seeing only the red of dying flames and a thick cloud of roiling smoke. As Flik was watching, a messenger from Tarrance's half-company rode up.

"What news?" Flik asked, glancing towards the man.

"Sir, Tarrance reports enemy infantry and cavalry, retreating directly away from the lines. He judges that at least some of them appear to be in good order. They are falling back towards other Highland troops that appear fresh."

"Thank you. Ride up the line and tell the senior sergeants to meet me here."

"Sir, yes sir." The messenger rode off. Flik dispatched another to ride towards Viktor with that news. While waiting, he scrutinized the condition of the men. Now that battle did not seem to be imminent, some of them had slipped off their horses to attend to the wounded, or gather the dead. The wind suddenly kicked up at Flik's back, cool and fierce, driving the smoke away from him. He sighed; at least he would not be the one who would have to smell charred human flesh.

The four senior sergeants rode up and Flik listened to their casualty reports. Tarrance's half-company was unscathed, but the other three had suffered forty-six wounded and eighteen dead, though many of the wounds were minor burns from the Fire Spear accident. Flik closed his eyes; those were appalling casualties, regardless. Finally, he opened his eyes and sheathed his sword. "No pursuit," he said, calmly. "See to your half-companies. Prepare to return to the fort. Tarrance, you will have the rearguard position. Dismissed!"


	9. Chapter 9 A Harsh Lesson in War

**Chapter 9- A Harsh Lesson in War**

Some hours later, Tarrance's half-company was the last of a long line of weary, emotionally drained soldiers to enter the mercenary fort. Flik shivered; the wind was gusting in chilly spurts, piling up low, dark clouds overhead, causing a premature twilight to descend in the late afternoon. Viktor was nearby, discussing the treatment of the wounded and the disposition of the sentries. Tsai was collecting Fire Spears, examining them with a concerned look on his face. Apple was huddled with Leona and some representatives from the refugees, talking to them in a hurried tone. Nanami sat on the steps of the headquarters building, tightly hugging Pilika, the younger brown haired girl still in her simple pink dress. Nanami's eyes were red-shot and haunted. Jowy stood nearby, watching the two girls, his pale face reflecting battle ardor gone cold. Riou stood aloof, even in the midst of a crowd, closed eyes seemingly fixed on some point in the far distance. Flik, for one, was looking forward to a hot meal and his bed.

Suddenly, his instincts kicked in; something was out of place. He spotted it almost immediately, a young boy running in from the refugee camp. All of the conversations in the fort stopped as the men turned to watch. Apple broke free from her group and walked towards the kid, bending down to hear what he said. Flik started walking in that direction, too, followed by Viktor. Flik's hand strayed towards the pommel of his sword.

"-Highland soldiers, coming this way, a whole lot of them," Flik heard the boy exclaim. Apple jerked upright, as if she'd been struck. Behind, Flik heard the sudden hushed murmuring of hundreds of soldiers. He knew what they were thinking, that they'd already won the battle for today and that they shouldn't have to fight again.

Viktor put his arm on Apple's shoulder. "So, we'd better get ready to go back to battle. Any strategies?"

Tsai trotted over to them. "The Fire Spears will need maintenance before we can use them in another major battle. There's no telling how they will react if they're used again." He frowned.

Apple set her face. "We'll do what we have to do." Then, brushing Tsai aside, she walked towards the steps of the headquarters building. The soldiers, already reforming into companies, turned to attention. "I know that you are tired," she began, "but so are the Highlanders. We beat them once today and we can beat them again." She turned to Flik. "Flik, you will lead your cavalry as the vanguard. Engage the Highlanders, give Viktor time to deploy to your rear, and then slide off to Viktor's left. Viktor, deploy your eight companies as you see fit. Your front will be narrower, so defending should be easier. Riou's company is the rearguard and will be used to move refugees out of the camp. Now go!"

Flik turned to walk towards his men. From behind he heard Viktor talking to Riou. "Are you ready to go?"

Flik did not hear Riou's answer. Instead, he was met by Rossgard and Tarrance, along with the two other senior sergeants, Chester and Simeon. Without a preamble, he laid out the plan. "We will advance in a diamond formation. Tarrance will be the vanguard, with Chester on the right flank, Simeon on the left flank, and Rossgard to the rear. We will advance through the camp and engage the Highlanders at extreme range. We will do two," he held up two fingers, "Fire Spear attacks. Then, Rossgard will lead his half company off to our left, becoming the vanguard of a diamond formation moving in that direction. Simeon will hold the right flank in this formation, Chester the left flank, and Tarrance will become the rearguard. We slide off to the left and anchor Viktor's left flank. Any questions?"

There were no questions, or any useless displays of machismo. They all knew that the odds were bad. Finally, Tarrance said, "We understand, sir."

Flik nodded and then glanced back at Viktor's men assembling into a long marching line. Viktor gave Flik a goofy smile and then nodded. Flik turned back to his men and said, "We move out now."

Outside the fort, Flik's cavalry was besieged almost immediately by a crowd of refugees streaming towards the fort. They wailed in fear, clawing at one another in their desperation to escape the Highlanders, threatening to block Flik's march more completely than any similar body of enemy soldiers might have attempted. There were young mothers with howling children, men supporting their infirm parents, people with little more than the clothes on their backs, and some who were trying to guide carts piled with possessions. Others had already decided that the fort was no refuge, trying instead for the safety of the trees. A few, Flik sighed, were using the confusion for their own gain, looting through the abandoned possessions that littered the camp.

Still, the formation muscled through. Occasionally, Flik had to reach out a gentle hand to push aside a woman or child that came too close. Occasionally, he had to punch, bash, or kick men that came too close. Through it all, he closed his ears to their curses and pleas, and he shut his mind to their faces. Then they were at the far end of the camp, the noise of the crowd now entirely behind them. He hoped that Viktor would be able to navigate his way through.

He paused a few moments to allow the sergeants to dress the formation properly, sending forward a few scouts to survey the situation. It didn't take long for them to report back.

"Sir, Highlanders advancing in a line of battle, with cavalry skirmishers out front and to the sides."

Flik nodded; there seemed little need to change the plan. For a moment he paused. The wind was steady and cold, filled with greater gusts that pulled at his blue cape and shook the new leaves into a roar. The clouds in the sky were low and dark, already filling the air with misty drizzle. The Highlanders were just barely visible, marching towards them out of the gloom of twilight. Their pennants were also rippling with the wind, showing them to be from the Third Highland Army, commanded by Lord Kiba.

"Fire Spears, ready!" Flik yelled, feeling the wind trying to rip away his voice. The cry was echoed up and down the line, followed by motion as the men prepared their spears. Flik drew his own sword, looking at the opposing lines. The infantry seemed to have drawn up, leaving only the cavalry advancing. He could see concern creeping into the eyes of those men closest to him; the cavalry alone out numbered them ten to one.

"Fire Spears! Attack!"

Unprepared for the sudden brightness, Flik had to quickly avert his eyes, trying to focus his vision through blossoming afterimages. The air sizzled with the heat of the flames carrying across the field, towards the advancing enemy.

"Something's not right!" someone down the line shouted. Flik, still blinking tears out of his eyes, looked back up. He immediately cursed at what had happened. The strong wind was carrying the flames from the spears off to the right and short of the Highlanders. Their cavalry, or at least the part of it not hindered by the flames, was now pulling into a canter, clearly intending to bring this battle to a melee.

Thinking quickly, Flik yelled, "Fire Spears, left aim, thirty degrees!" He watched as the men tried to comply with the order. A large number of them, he was sure, would have no idea exactly how much thirty degrees was. Some of them would have difficulty with the left from right bit. He shook those thoughts from his head; there wasn't enough time to worry about pointing all of their spears in the same direction.

"Second time! Fire Spears! Attack!"

Several things happened at once; all of them were bad. For about a third of the men, their spears did little more than sputter tiny little flames into the darkness. One man, down at the end of the line, was suddenly turned into a raging fireball as his spear self-combusted. The remainder of the Fire Spears continued to work as advertised, spewing flames right into the teeth of a cold blast of wind rising right in Flik's face. For one heart stopping moment, he was sure that the gust would pull the towering wave of fire right back down onto his own line.

It did not, though he shuddered away from the fierce heat as a wall of fire mushroomed mere yards from his position. His horse reflexively turned aside, carefully stepping back. In the darkness to the rear, he saw a half-company of cavalry riding down the line. It took Flik a few moments to realize that this was Rossgard, following the orders he was given. The other half-companies were now wheeling into the new formation. He looked beyond Rossgard, to try and gain any information on Viktor's whereabouts.

Even as he looked back, Flik saw the far southern wall of the fort go up in flames. He instinctively knew exactly what those flames portended. Around him, the rearguard was riding by. Tarrance reined up beside him, yelling, "Sir? Your orders?"

Before Flik could even open his mouth to respond, hundreds of Highland cavalry burst out of the forests ahead of Rossgard, crashing into the mercenaries' wavering formation. More cavalrymen were riding in from the left and the right, threatening to overwhelm Flik's two companies.

"Tarrance," he snapped, "we are going to disengage and retreat back to the fort. Take your half-company and go in support of Chester on the left flank. Use your Fire Spears to keep the Highlanders off you. Go!" Tarrance nodded, gathering his half-company to him. Flik spurred his horse, riding into the melee whirling around Rossgard.

He was met by the approaching spear of a blue and white liveried Highlander. Flik braced in his saddle, taking the shaft-snapping impact of the spear off his shield, and then he casually reached out with his sword and pricked his opponent mortally in the neck. Ahead flames leaped up, as Rossgard's men tried to hold the Highlanders off them. Flik found him in the midst of a knot of his men, giving ground gradually behind the cover of flames.

"There you are, sir." Rossgard said, when Flik rode up. Rossgard had cast aside his fire spear, leading his remaining men with his sword. "Can't get any further forward, sir. Too many of them, and more to my right and left. I think Simeon's half-company is completely gone."

Flik peered out past the dying flames, watching the Highlanders milling behind them. "Never mind that," he began, "the fort is in trouble. I'm leading the companies back to see what we can do. Tarrance and Chester are to your left and rear."

"Sir," Rossgard affirmed. After a few shouted commands, the battered remnants of his half-company were riding off at a careful trot, flames covering their retreat. They were met just inside the edge of the refugee camp by Chester and Tarrance. Altogether, the remaining men would've accounted for an understrength company. A very badly understrength company.

There was another powerful blast of cold wind, fanning the flames at Flik's back towards the outer tents of the camp. For the moment, the Highlanders were obscured behind the fire and smoke. The last pale light of the day was leeching out the clouds overhead, casting everything not illuminated by fire into utter black.

He led his men back towards the fort. Refugees, who before had sought the safety of that fort, were now madly fleeing in the opposite direction. Spooked, they recoiled away from both the encroaching flames and Flik's men, scattering into the doubtful safety of the darkness. They were less of an impediment this time, and he soon navigated his way back to the fort entrance.

Inside was a confused and swirling battle; mercenaries, refugees, and Highlanders fighting and fleeing in little clusters, or gathered behind overturned carts seeking respite. Flik could take in no more, for suddenly his men were caught up in an eddy of one of those melees. He wrenched his sword down through the white plume and helmet of an approaching enemy infantryman, kicking the corpse away to free his sword afterwards. More soldiers rushed towards him, prodding with long spears. Spurring his horse forward, Flik blocked one with his shield and parried two others with his sword, thrusting that blade into the face of an enemy who came too close. The other two were cut down by his men, riding in support of their leader.

The fighting around Flik abated as the Highlanders fell back, rather than be caught between the cavalry and mercenary infantry. Viktor, his clothes stained with sweat and a little bit of blood, jogged over as Flik dismounted. Out of the corner of his eye, Flik also saw Riou and Jowy nearby.

"We're in serious trouble here," Viktor said, gesturing towards the fighting with a sweep of his hand.

Flik sighed. "We'll have to retreat then. There's no way we'll be able to hold the fort when their other units arrive."

Viktor nodded. "That's what Apple thought, too. She, Leona, and the others have already evacuated to the west."

"Right." Flik motioned for his three remaining senior sergeants, who rode up. "We've decided to abandon the fort. Our job is to go to the west gate and secure the escape route." He turned to look at Riou and Jowy, who were listening intently. "You need to get out of here," Flik commanded. "If you get separated, try to make your way to Muse City."

He turned to mount his horse, but Viktor reached out a hand to stop him. "I don't want this fort to fall into enemy hands," he said in a diminished voice.

Flik understood. "You have some sort of plan?"

Viktor smiled broadly in response. "Of course I do, but I'll need some help."

"Let's get this over with, then," Flik responded and turned to speak with his men. "I'm going with Viktor. Ride to the west gate, secure it, and wait for my return."

His men rode off. Viktor and Flik sprinted through the carnage for the main building in the fort. The doors were already ajar, and as they entered the semi-darkness within they were met by a group of Highland soldiers. These were members of the White Wolves, as the large white plumes on their helmets and the white two-headed wolves on their shields signified. They hesitated momentarily at the sudden arrival of Viktor and Flik.

Flik did not. He brought up his right hand and, power crackling in his fist, sent several bolts of lightning from his lightning rune scything through the enemy. Those bolts impacted with deafening booms and lifted the White Wolf soldiers into the air, smashing them into tables, walls, and wooden pillars. In the aftermath, he surveyed his handiwork; none of those soldiers would be conscious, let alone a threat, for some time.

Viktor, rubbing at his ears, shouted, "You know, when you get down to it, you really know how to party."

Flik shook his head. "Let's just hurry up and do what you want to do, okay?"

Viktor led them down into the basement, towards the blacksmith's area. "You get that fire going again, and then I'll dump some of the Fire Spears in there, and we'll bring this building down." Flik nodded and grabbed the giant bellows, pumping for all he was worth. After about the fourth pump, with his arms aching, he realized why Viktor had given him this job. Still, he had the fire going by the time Viktor returned with a double armful of Fire Spears, which he proceeded to toss into the flames, almost smothering them out. Then he said, "Time to get the heck out of here, I think."

Flik couldn't have agreed more, but as he ran up the stairs out of the basement, he had a sudden premonition and, ignoring Viktor's shocked oath, continued up the stairs towards the second level. He smashed the door to his room open and dove for the lowest level of his bookcase. Pulling out a book strap, he feverishly stacked a certain set of books.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Viktor yelled, from the doorway. "They're just books, leave 'em."

Flik pulled the strap around them. "My whole life is bound up in these," he yelled back.

"What good is your diary if you die here? You can always write it again, anyway."

Flik snapped the strap tight, pulling the books up as he stood. "There, I've got them. Now we can go."

"Hell of way to die," Viktor muttered, but was suddenly cut off by the sound of a sudden blood choked scream. He looked back over his shoulder, down the hallway as a little girl began to wail. He swore and dashed from the room. Flik, books tucked under his arm, followed him, heading towards the meeting room. Just as he reached the open door, the fort shook violently, almost wrenching him off his feet. The power contained in those burning Fire Spears was obviously being released. Using the door handle for leverage, Flik propelled himself into the meeting room.

Inside stood a man who looked more like a nightmare given flesh, the Prince of Highland, Luca Blight. A towering, puissant hulk, he was in the middle of the room, his gaze fixed on the blood slowly running down his long silver sword. Gore streaked the white of his gold trimmed plate mail and the long blue cape that hung down his back. Off to one side lay the corpse of a senior sergeant, Pohl, whose chest had been ripped open from clavicle to abdomen by one powerful sword stroke. At his feet were Riou, Jowy, and Pilika, the little girl screaming in abject fear, the two boys hastily trying to scramble back to their feet.

"Get out of here!" Flik yelled, rushing towards the three children. "We're going to blow the whole fort using Fire Spears." The sound of Flik's voice drew Luca Blight's gaze, the large, sharp chin and beady, wild eyes turning towards him. Even his thick, black hair was splattered with blood. Flik quashed a spasm of fear and quickly scooped Pilika into his free hand. Riou and Jowy had recovered their feet.

Luca Blight took a step forward. "Die pigs!" he shouted, his voice shrill with manic energy. The fort shook again, more violently, and the room began to fill with smoke and the reddish glare of fire. Luca stumbled slightly and Viktor lunged towards the monster, sword raised for a killing blow.

"Go! Go!" Flik shouted at Riou and Jowy, nudging them with his forearms to get them started. Over Pilika's screams, he heard Viktor's blow ring powerfully on Luca's breastplate. Then he was back in the corridor. Riou and Jowy, ahead, were little more than indistinct forms in the smoky haze. Still, they made their way down the stairs and out of the doors, even as Leona's tavern began to fill with flames.

Outside, they paused to gather their breath. Pilika had gone ominously quiet in Flik's arms, and Jowy, eyes imploring, came forward to see to her. Carefully, Flik handed her over, and Jowy cradled her, whispering to her gently. Smoke poured from all the windows of the building and out the front door.

Viktor suddenly burst from the veiled portal, almost as if the fort had spat him out, yelling, "Keep running, you fools! He's right behind me!"

There was no better motivation than that. Tired as he was, Flik found himself sprinting towards the west gate of the fort. In between huge gasps of air, he heard Viktor, in an awed tone, say, "That blow should've incapacitated him, broken his collarbone, something. I dented his armor, and he shook it off like I'd done nothing more than tap him."

The ground lurched and the main building of the fort burst apart in a fountain of flames. Flik was propelled face first into the turf, but quickly recovered and, gathering his books again, continued towards the gate. Something burning and wooden, possibly his own bed, cartwheeled through the air about twenty yards to the left, shattering into splinters when it hit the ground. As if that had been some sort of signal, the wind gusted into Flik's face and a fat, cold drop of rain hit him in the left eye.

The intensity of the rain was steadily increasing by the time Flik and the others made it to the west gate and the group of his horsemen who stood guard over it. He and Viktor turned back to look at the fort one more time. Despite the rain, the pyre of the main building continued burn fiercely. The Highland soldiers had wisely retreated and were no longer visible on the battlefield. He turned back to the waiting soldiers. Ahead lay the western forest, which years ago had been tended and logged regularly, but now had grown wild and thick.

They plunged inside, into the damp darkness. Flik could hear the rainfall pattering off the canopy, sudden showers of collected water spilling down onto the undergrowth and the occasional unlucky soldier. He shrugged, they'd likely all be soaked and chilled to the bone before this night was done. They were not alone in the forest, all around them refugees crashed through the brush and trees, and the Highland army was surely nearby, harrying them as they fled.

They were retreating down an old logging road, pitted with ancient ruts and now obstructed by fallen trees, covered in slimy moss. Flik, soaked hair plastered against his forehead, had just scrambled over one such tree when the slope just to the north suddenly lit up with torchlight from Highland soldiers. More soldiers appeared, blocking the path forward.

"Surrender!" a voice yelled. Flik looked up the slope; a red haired Highland general, with a white and red tunic over his armor, had appeared at the top of the ridge. "You have nowhere left to run, mercenary dogs!" The top of the ridge was crawling with Highland infantry.

"What now?" Viktor asked, under his breath. "Things are looking pretty bad."

"Organize the men and clear the road ahead," Flik responded, calmly. "I'll deal with this Highland whelp."

He turned and walked towards the foot of the slope, leaving Viktor to his task. The Highland general, of a height with Flik if slightly thinner, had taken a few steps down from the top and was casually leaning against a tree. His dark eyes were fixed, hawk like, on Flik as he approached. His triangular face was twisted into a sneer of contempt as he tapped his thin blade against his mailed boot.

"I've set the snare and look what rabbits I've caught," he said, the sneer bleeding into his voice. "In all that blue you're wearing, who else could you be but the famous Flik of the Blue Thunder, who fought in the Liberation Army during the Toran Liberation War?"

Why, Flik found himself wondering, had he ever let himself be talked into accepting that conceit? And wasn't it "Blue Lightning?"

The Highland general continued. "With your head as a gift, Prince Luca Blight will surely reward me with lands and a noble title. Ha! Seed of Sajah, born a peasant's son, will soon be Lord Seed." He stepped away from the tree, carefully picking his way down the slope, sword pointed directly at Flik, clearly intending to take Flik's head with his own hand.

Flik had no intention of letting that happen, or even of fighting fairly. He sent Seed flying back up the slope, propelled by a bright bolt of lightning, until the Highland general crashed back first into a tree. He slumped over, unconscious, as smoke and steam poured from his clothing. The Highland soldiers on the top of the ridge suddenly disappeared.

Viktor called out a charge and, with the few remaining Fire Spears that worked, managed to scatter the Highland soldiers blocking their path. The retreat continued, pressing through the forest until they reached a large clearing, where once the logging camp had stood. A curious collection of several hundred mercenary infantry and refugees had gathered there and in their midst was Apple, Barbara, and Leona, hard at work organizing them into some semblance of a marching order.

Leona, with a brown mantle thrown over her normal attire, spoke up when she saw them. "Viktor, Flik, thank goodness you're safe. We weren't sure who survived after Luca Blight attacked."

Apple, supported on one shoulder by Barbara, approached, coughing violently as she did so. She was completely soaked and shivering in the rain, looking very wan. "Have you seen Riou and Jowy?" she asked, her voice thin and hoarse.

Flik looked over his men, realizing that he didn't see them. "They were with us when we left the fort, but they seem to have gotten separated from us in the confusion."

She nodded. "Nanami was worried about them and decided to go looking for them. I sent Kinnison, Shiro, and Zamza with her." She shook her head sadly. "We can only hope, now."

Viktor frowned. "Can we wait for them?"

Everyone was silent for a moment, not wanting to be the one who would have to make the decision to leave them behind. Finally, Flik spoke up. "No, we have to go. There are too many Highland soldiers in the forest for us to wait here."

He looked over at Apple for confirmation. She nodded, then shook with a fit of coughing before answering, "Yes, we must go. If they make it, they'll catch up to us in Muse."

Wearily, the soldiers and refugees marched on towards the west. Flik, finally regaining his mount, led the sorry remnant of his cavalry in the van, while Viktor organized those infantry that still had some spirit left into a rearguard. The forest was alive with horrific screams and pleas for mercy as Highland soldiers overtook scattered groups of mercenaries or refugees and slaughtered them all, but no soldiers appeared to impede Flik's progress. Eventually the sounds receded, softened and finally muted by the rising downpour of rain.

Finally, after many hours of riding through the darkness, Flik let his aching muscles relax, but his mind was still tightly wound, absorbing a harsh lesson in war.


	10. Chapter 10 Vault of Heaven

**Chapter 10 – Vault of Heaven**

The following morning dawned cold, windy, wet, and gray. Flik felt sure that it was cold enough for the overcast sky to call down snow, but it did not. Instead, the rain slackened down to a dreary drizzle, which did not help much as everyone was already soaked. The forests were left in their wake, and the refugees trailed out into the plains in a long line of people and carts.

As Flik was regarding this long line, a woman came jogging up to him. She had been in Toto when Luca Blight attacked and, as well as being one of Riou's recruits, she had also become the de facto representative of the refugees from that poor village. Like everyone else, her brown shoulder length hair was wet and plastered down. Unlike everyone else, though, she hailed from the far north, from the Nameless Lands. Like all the denizens of that land, she was tall, taller even than Flik, and powerfully muscled. He was sure that she knew how to use the sword at her side and the buckler on her left arm.

"Hanna," he said, by way of greeting, when she stopped by his horse. He had to wonder though, even given the northerners' vaunted reputation for toughness, surely she must be feeling a little cold? Her toned skin glistened around a leather chest guard and her long legs were covered only by some sort of animal pelt hastily worked into a skirt and boots made of the same hide.

"Sir Flik," she responded, tersely. "There are more refugees joining us. We do not have enough carts to accommodate the wounded, nor enough food to feed them all."

Flik bit back a harsh reply, wanting desperately to tell her to let Apple, or Viktor decide, or even to tell her to decide for herself. Hanna frowned, intense eyes focused squarely on him. Flik turned away, looking back out in the direction they were going.

"The soldiers," he began, "will give up their spots on the carts for the wounded refugees. If there is still not enough room, then women and children will be given priority." Flik gritted his teeth. "That's the order. Tarrance!" The senior sergeant in question snapped up out of a half doze. "Detail some men to go with Hanna and make sure my orders are carried out."

He didn't wait to see what Hanna would make of that, but instead Flik spurred his horse and rode up to the scouts at the very front of the line. With a group of five, he began a long patrol out towards the east, to see what he might of the Highland's moves. The fields were empty, the steads that dotted the land reduced to burnt out husks. After some hours on patrol, he finally did run into a group of Highland soldiers, cresting a ridge in the distance just as he crested the one he was riding up. The two groups of cavalry stared at each other for a long moment; Flik's five men brandishing Fire Spears that no one was sure worked waiting out the twenty-five or so Highland cavalry on the opposite slope.

Then, without preamble, the Highlanders simply turned and rode back the way they came. Flik remained on that hill for some time after they left, staring out into space. The drizzle stopped, but the wind remained brisk and strong, shepherding the clouds off to the east. The brilliant blue vault of heaven opened up over Flik's head. He had been taught, back in his youth in the Warrior's Village, that the spirits of the great heroes resided up there, looking down on the world. To those who followed the Way of the Warrior, they were said to offer victory. To those who deviated from the Way…surely they hadn't sent this defeat to him to remind him that he had strayed? Surely they wouldn't countenance a monster like Luca Blight victorious?

_Odessa, are you up there somewhere?_

From behind, Flik heard one of the soldiers cough. He shook his head, he still had duties to attend to. Duty, another facet of the Way, finally led him off the hill and back towards the line of refugees.

They turned north, making what little time they could. Apple, wrapped in blankets, was wracked with coughs and fevers as she lay in one of the carts, with Millie and Leona in attendance. Barbara, along with ten of the more trustworthy mercenaries, guarded the strongbox. Rikimaru sat directly on top of it, brandishing his huge cleaver, Onimaru, at any person who looked a little too desperately towards it. Tsai, with a third cart, tended to the remaining Fire Spears, though no one could be sure if they still worked, at this point. Even Gengen, the Kobold warrior, plowed stoically along, little legs working to keep up.

Others, though, couldn't or wouldn't. Some of the mercenaries slinked away, deciding that their chances were better away from the slow moving refugees. Some of the wounded fell further and further behind. Whole families would stop, waiting for one member to start moving again. Chester, his face gashed open by two horrible sword cuts, eventually lay back against a rock, motionless as the train passed him by. It was the last Flik ever saw of him.

Finally night came and the refugees had to stop. The wind howled out of the blackness, off of Lake Dunan, terribly cold and unrelenting. There was little wood, and little enough to get it burning. Food was passed out in pitiful amounts, and Flik had none, letting his growling stomach serve as penance for the defeat. People huddled together to sleep, seeking warmth as they were able. Flik, for his part, collapsed into a dreamless sleep with his back to the spokes of the cart that Apple, still in the throws of her sickness, was resting on.

Something was tickling his nose, and he was unable to ignore it and keep sleeping. Cautiously, Flik opened his eyes. It was still night, and he was still back first to the spokes of the cart, wedged into position by mercenaries on either side. He looked down to find Millie's floppy white beret on his lap. Slowly, Flik squirmed to work his way free from the side of the cart. Each movement brought with it a particular sort of pain. His back twinged from resting on the spokes, his arms and legs were dully sore from their exertions over the past two days, his face was raw and chapped from the cold wind, and his empty stomach threatened to double him over in weakness and pain.

Finally, he managed to disengage himself from the tangle and stood up, holding Millie's beret in his hands. Looking at the cart, he could see her brown hair trailing over the side, directly above where he had been sleeping. Peering in, he saw her amidst the other women of the mercenary company. Her strange little pet, Bonaparte, was fast asleep, curled in her arms and Leona's mantle had been placed over her legs. Gently, Flik put the beret back on her head.

The sound of a series of weak coughs drew Flik's attention. Apple, still wrapped in blankets, was regarding him through heavily lidded eyes. Her face was pale and drawn, seemingly aged thirty or forty years by sickness, dirt, and the moonlight, which glared off her glasses.

"Water…please?" she croaked, trembling hands extending a battered tin cup.

"Yes, of course," Flik answered, accepting the cup. She didn't give any sign of hearing the response, so he walked away, heading for a nearby stream.

The night was clear and cold, but calm, the brutal winds finally having died down. There was light enough to find the way, with thousands of brilliant stars, and the two moons -the Blue high and nearly half full and the Red trailing slightly in both position and phase- adorning the night sky like glittering jewels. The Dawn Star was also up, foreshadowing the coming of the day.

He worked his way slowly around carts and groups of huddled refugees and past the hastily constructed tether lines for the horses. On the far end of the rudimentary encampment was a shallow stream, one of hundreds of little brooks that fed into the eastern side of Lake Dunan. Flik worked his way upstream, seeking cleaner water away from the camp. Finding a likely spot, he stooped down, checking the water to see that it was clear, not murky, or choked with algae. Satisfied that the water was reasonably safe, he dipped the cup into the flow, pulling it out when it was almost full. Briefly, he looked at the dim reflection in the water. The face that looked back was tired, covered with bruises and dirt, and had two days worth of stubble on its cheeks. Curiously, Flik felt at his jaw line; his shaving blade was probably a twisted chunk of metal back in the ruins of the fort. He sighed and walked back towards the camp.

Getting to the stream and back had taken all of about twenty minutes, but when he returned, Apple seemed to be asleep. Flik shook her shoulder gently, until her eyes opened slightly.

"I've returned with the water," he said, offering the cup.

"Mathiu?" she croaked, causing Flik to hesitate. "Please, don't go, Mathiu."

"I-" He was not sure how to proceed.

She reached out trembling arms towards him. "Let me comfort you, Master. You always seem so sad when you think about your sister. Let me take that away from you."

Sadness shot through Flik anew at the mention of Odessa. He had never stopped to think about how her death might have hurt her brother, Mathiu Silverberg. "It's all right," Flik finally answered. "We," he tried to hold his voice steady, "we completed her dream for a new nation. We won." He pressed the cup into Apple's hands and she reflexively closed them over it. He then guided her hands and the cup back towards her mouth. "You need to drink this. You'll feel better afterwards. Slowly, now." Unquestioningly, she followed his commands, dribbling a little of the water down her cheek. Flik reached out and wiped it away, feeling the heat of her fever even through his gloves.

After seeing Apple back to sleep, he tried to go back as well, but found he couldn't. Instead, he sat there, back to the spokes again, thinking about things as the first hints of dawn crept into the distant eastern horizon. He had never really thought about how Odessa's death had hurt others. And how that hurt had radiated out through so many people. He laughed, once, ruefully, a burst of warm mist into the cold night air. Was he really so selfish that he'd thought only he could have a complete claim on her love?

The mercenaries and refugees woke with the sun not because they had been ordered to, but because it was their routine, and they tenaciously clung to their habitual duties, for that was all that was left. There was no food and many of the wounded were worse for wear from the night. Mechanically, camp was struck and the procession moved on towards the north and west for a second day.

This day was better, the bright spring sun and a gentle southwest wind dispersing the chill in the air. The Highlanders remained a menace felt but not seen, and Flik was too tired to send out any patrols to go looking for trouble. As they moved north, the ground became more difficult; gentle, rolling hills giving way to sharper, tree-covered bluffs with little rivulets and ponds filled with glittering water meandering through folds in the land. Mostly they stayed away from the hills, but occasionally Flik would ride up one. In the distance to the north and west he could see the land sloping down into a vast marsh, the Bitterfens, and a small lake, Horsetail Lake, and finally the much greater waters of Lake Dunan. They were approaching the ruins of Toto.

As the afternoon shadows wore on the acute pain in Flik's stomach began to occupy most of his attention. The landscape -rivers, bluffs, and trees- turned into a dreamy blur in his eyes, and he rode on, drifting in and out of full consciousness.

"Halt! You there, stop!"

Flik's hand jerked reflexively towards his sword, head coming up suddenly to scan the horizon. The mercenaries were passing next to a trickling, rocky streambed that was flanked by steep slopes on either side. Cavalry, with horsebows drawn, were posted along the length of both slopes. A contingent of horsemen also barred the path forward. Flik cursed, he'd led them all, refugees and his men, directly into an ambush. Wearily, he tried to think of some way out of this. Attacking, given the state of his men, would be suicide. Worse, it would be in vain, for the refugees were in no position to escape, even if he spent the lives of his men. All that was left was mercy.

His men were looking towards him, waiting for him to give the command. "Stand down," he ordered, loudly enough for the men up the stream to hear him. "I'll ride ahead, and…we'll see." He did ride forward, arms extended out to the side, well away from his sword and shield. Now that he was fully awake again, Flik scrutinized the men he was approaching. They were not dressed in the typical blue and white of Highland cavalry, but rather in simple tan and green leathers. It was no wonder he'd blundered into this; even if he'd been fully prepared, they'd have been difficult to track.

"That's far enough," one of the men spoke with an air of authority. The speaker guided his horse a few steps forward, and Flik saw that he was a man of medium build, dressed like the others, save for a thin silver band that he wore under his brown hair. "State your name, unit, and business," he ordered, brusquely. His hazel eyes were scanning Flik's men, his face framed by a full brown beard with just the barest sprinkling of white in it.

"I'm Flik, co-commander of the Mercenary Army of Jowston. We have refugees from Ryube and Toto with us. They need food and shelter, quickly."

"Flik, you say?" He scratched thoughtfully at his beard. "Not the famous Flik of the Blue Lightning?"

Flik clenched his hands, eyes studying the rocks at his horse's feet. "Yes, that Flik. Take my head if you must, but spare the people behind me. They've suffered enough." Suddenly, the cavalry commander started laughing. Flik's head swung back up in time to see him sheathe his sword, a jovial smile breaking out on his face. For the first time, Flik noted the livery of the buckler that hung on the commander's left arm. It was a white quill on a red field.

"I am so very sorry," he said, extending his hands in a gesture of friendliness. "This has almost been a tragic misunderstanding. You are not among enemies but have found friends. I am Captain Holm of the Greenhill Rangers, attached to General Hauser's army. We were sent to find you." With a waved command, the men on the hilltops stood down, unstringing their bows and carefully working their way down the slope. He rode forward, offering a pair of biscuits and a lump of cheese in his hands.

As Holm drew close, Flik lunged, snatching the food right out of his hands, stuffing the hard bread into his mouth with huge bites that threatened to choke him.

"Easy there," Holm said, offering his canteen.

More carefully, Flik gulped down a swig of water to clear his mouth. The food had only served to redouble the pain in Flik's stomach, as if it were only now realizing how empty it had been. Clenching, he got out, "There's so many more back behind me. Hundreds…maybe thousands."

Holm took back the canteen. "I understand. You're almost to Toto. I'll send a messenger back to tell the general to prepare all the food we can spare. My men and I can guide you the rest of the way."

And so they did, though it was well past midnight when Viktor, leading the exhausted rearguard, finally brought the last of the men into the remains of the town. The Highland Army had pillaged and burned the town, leaving only a few husks of dressed stone to mark where the more affluent had lived. Even all of this, though, couldn't dampen the mood. There was food, and the army from Muse was not stingy with it. Flik, after eating what he thought was excessive, watched people literally stuff themselves until they were sick. Afterwards, he found a secluded spot in the ruins of a house, curled up around his cape, and went to sleep.

_In Solis 460, Earthsdei, the 18th of Avrai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_They used to say, back at home, that in times of distress, a warrior should find victory in little things, like surviving another day, or in my case, finding a working pen. Still, this doesn't feel much like anything except defeat. Worse yet, I don't think there was anything we could've done to avoid it. Should we have fought at all? I can only hope that by fighting, we did manage to save more lives than we lost._

_Viktor is putting on a brave front, but I think this defeat hurts much more for him. Even if it's not his hometown, a part of his home country is now occupied by an enemy. A particularly brutal and merciless enemy. I remember how I felt when Warrior's Village was threatened two years ago. Apple is feeling a little better today, well enough that she wished to listen to the results of our inspection._

_Those results were not encouraging. Of the eleven hundred men that were on the rolls three days ago, only four hundred and ten answered at our informal muster today. I don't know how many of our men died in the fight, but I sincerely hope that most of the missing have simply deserted. Tsai is busy counting up the remaining Fire Spears, and it's been decided that my unit, once reconstituted, will take the remainder of the spears._

_There is still no sign of Riou, Jowy, Nanami, or the others that Apple sent out with them. I can only hope that they are safe and making their way towards Muse. Or, if not Muse, then somewhere far, far away from this war._

Flik looked up as a shadow fell across his writing. He was still in the ruins of the house, back propped against a wall, his legs supporting his diary. The morning sunlight fell blotchy on the floor through holes in the roof and the now door-less entrance. A soldier, one of the Greenhill Rangers, stood in the doorway.

"Sir, General Hauser requests your presence, if you would."

Flik closed the diary, placing it with the others in his bookstrap. He knew an order, even a politely phrased one, when he heard it.

He followed the ranger out and across the remains of Toto. The town was emptier than it had been last night, many of the refugees having already moved on across the River Dorthai. Most of the remaining people were those mercenaries, and, in some cases, their families, who had decided to remain with Viktor and Flik. Viktor was waiting for Flik at the bridge over the river and greeted him with a nod as he joined them.

Hauser's encampment was on the other side of the river, rows of tents bustling with activity and yet extremely orderly. His soldiers were hard at work preparing fortifications, obviously not intending to proceed into East Muse and challenge Luca Blight. His tent, more like a large pavilion, stood in the very center of the camp with roads radiating out from it. With a salute, the ranger turned Flik and Viktor over to the care of an aide standing just outside.

"This way," the aide gestured, with just the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice. The inside of the tent was sectioned off by dividers, but every room that Flik could see was filled with men working at desks, feverishly writing off reports and taking care of the thankless paperwork that keeps an army running. The aide led them to a small room in the back of the tent and pulled up the flap, saying, "They're here, sir."

"Send them in." The voice that gave that command was deep but mellow, and almost gentle. Ducking inside, Flik's eyes were drawn immediately to General Hauser. There was an intensity about this man. His gray eyes blazed like beacons out of a face that was dark brown. Everything, from his close cropped black hair and perfectly ordered mustache, to his spotless blue and brown tunic and pants, bespoke of an almost desperate professionalism and drive. Apple had told them that at least one of his parents was from somewhere far to the south of the Queendom of Falena, and that he had risen through the ranks of the Muse military on determination and exceptional ability.

He was standing at a small, square table, looking at a map and two letters that had been tossed down on top of it. His bed was on the back cloth of the tent, his sword and a silver chest protector carefully arranged on it. He nodded as they entered, gesturing to two chairs at the closer end of the table. He sat down into his own chair. The aide hovered nearby as they sat down.

Hauser turned his head, looking at the aide. "I shall have coffee, as usual." He looked back at Viktor and Flik. "May I offer you gentlemen something as well?"

Viktor considered. "I'll take the coffee, but can you kick it up with something, like brandy?"

"That can be arranged," Hauser answered, and then looked at Flik. "And you?"

Flik, not wanting to be rude, answered, "I'll take the coffee, too." Then, remembering how bitter that drink was, added, "With cream and sugar." The aide scurried away to get the drinks.

Hauser continued. "I am sorry to hear of the loss of our positions in East Muse but very gratified that you two have survived safe and sound. Mayor Anabelle insisted most emphatically that securing you two was my highest priority." He smiled, just a little, and looked directly at Viktor. "Especially you."

Viktor rubbed at the base of his neck, as if working out a kink, and said, "Yeah, she can be a little scary when she 'insists' on things."

"Unfortunately," Hauser gestured at the letters on the table, "several influential senators sent me letters suggesting very strongly that I not send my army one step into East Muse. For the safety of the capital and reasons like that. It's a good thing for you that Captain Holm and his men agreed to come with me. That's the only way I could help you."

Flik frowned thoughtfully. Mayor Anabelle was technically the commander-in-chief of the Muse forces, but the elected Senate had complete control over both the money and the promotions. And, ever since the disastrous wars of her father, the Mayor Darrel, the Senate had been very active in upholding its prerogatives. Any general who ignored a "suggestion" from a powerful senator would often find that his army would suddenly end up critically short of money or that his next promotion had been delayed indefinitely.

The aide returned at that moment, bearing three cups of coffee. He carefully set down coasters on top of the map and then placed the cups down. He bowed and, at another gesture from Hauser, vanished from the room. Flik took a small sip from his and found it hot enough almost to scald his lips.

Hauser, meanwhile, said, "I was hoping that you might have some information on Luca Blight's army: where they are and what units constitute it."

Viktor, having drunk his coffee in one tremendous gulp, answered, "We haven't had any contact with their army in two days. Obviously, we weren't going out of our way to look for them. We all had other things on our minds." He set his cup down on his coaster.

"Your men haven't had contact, either?" Flik asked, setting his coffee down to cool.

Hauser shook his head. "I've sent Holm out looking, but he can't go too far in. Still, we haven't seen any traces of his men, not even scouts or skirmishers. I judge that unusual, perhaps ominously so." He set down his empty coffee cup. "What about the units? Are the commanders competent? Especially this Luca Blight, I'd like to know everything you can tell me about him."

Flik nodded. "The forces we saw were Solon Jhee's Second Army, Kiba Windamier's Third, and the White Wolves of Luca Blight. They appear to be well led, able to maneuver as full formations and individual units. Their sub-unit commanders are extremely competent, and aggressive. As for Luca Blight-" Flik paused, looking at Viktor, and tried to find the right words.

"He's a slave driver," Viktor offered. "He marched that whole army from Toto to my fort in two days and then fought a battle. He's more aggressive than anything you might imagine. If he sees an opening or a weakness, he'll go for it."

"It's more than that," Flik appended. "We didn't give his tactical imagination enough credit. He didn't just use his superior numbers to bludgeon us into defeat, but instead he held our attention with one force and then took the fort in a pincer move. He's definitely more than just a sword-swinging maniac."

Now Hauser frowned. "That's…distressing but good to know. Is there anything else you'd like to tell me? Any predictions on his next move?"

Viktor replied, "He'll probably do what we all least expect. I don't know, maybe lead his army through Radat towards South Window?"

Flik added, "I don't know about that, but he won't wait too long to make his next move. I wouldn't get too comfortable in your camp, general. You'll probably be marching somewhere else soon enough."


	11. Chapter 11 The Heart of Jowston

**Chapter 11 – The Heart of Jowston**

What remained of Viktor's Mercenary Army set off early that afternoon, heading west down the broad, unpaved East Road out of Toto towards Muse City. Flik, glancing at the adjoining fields as he rode along, noted how empty the countryside seemed. Though the planting season had begun, the farmlands that they passed were devoid of workers. The small villages that they went through seemed similarly deserted; nobody was out hawking their wares or even lazing about at the gates looking for gossip. Fear appeared to rule the day.

That evening they set camp just off the road. The mood was good; the mercenaries had been resupplied by Hauser, and they were marching, at least in the short term, away from potential danger. Viktor and Flik moved among circles of men, drinking in the high spirits. Eventually they came to the circle where the women had gathered. Barbara, who seemed to have appointed herself leader of the little group, looked up as they approached.

Viktor gave an embarrassed smile. "I'd like to talk to you all, if you don't mind," he said, in a subdued tone.

Barbara gestured towards the spot next to her, and Viktor sat down. Flik, out of the corner of his eye, noted Millie scooting over, offering him the spot between her and Apple. He shrugged and walked around the fire to sit there, noting, as he did so, that Apple seemed to be looking better. At least, she was down to just having one blanket wrapped around her.

There was a moment of silence, as everyone waited for Viktor to give voice to whatever it was that he wanted to declare. Instead, Barbara spoke. "I know what you're going to say. You're here to apologize to all of us for losing the battle, allowing Highland to torch our towns, and putting us through that hell of a march, right?"

Viktor's mouth hung slightly open, frozen in the act of forming the words that he had intended to use. Finally, shaking himself free, he turned to face Leona, and said, "I'm sorry about Toto. I wish we could have better avenged the burning of your hometown."

Leona glanced at Viktor sidelong, face bright from the reflected light, and answered in a quiet but intense voice, "It's not your fault. Besides," she clenched her right hand into a tight fist, "there'll be plenty of other chances to strike back at them."

Viktor paused, trying to work up his next statement. Barbara forestalled him again. "Now you're going to suggest that we'd be better off, safer even, if we all left you. Am I correct?"

Viktor sighed and then answered, "For all I know, I may not even have a contract when we get to Muse. There's nothing to be gained by following a potchless ex-mercenary commander."

"You think I'm following you because of the money?" Barbara chided, smiling to soften the blow. "Doesn't my being from North Window count for anything? We're all that's left from there. You're like a…little brother that I've got to look out for."

"Little…brother?" Viktor looked a little dazed.

"Besides, if I'd wanted money, I'd have stayed with my idiot husband."

Viktor shook this off. "What about you, Leona?" he asked.

"Where would I go?" she responded. "I've already decided that my place is with your company, Viktor. I can't fight back by myself, but I can fight back by helping you and your men. And don't think for even a moment that Anabelle will let your contract expire. She likes commanders who fight, and if there's one thing that you do well, it is fight."

Viktor looked around a little more desperately. "What about you, Apple? You could always go back to your research."

"Not a chance," she said, vehemently, coughing at the end of her statement. "I can't stand by and let a creep like Luca Blight become even more powerful. It would be an insult to the spirit of Master Mathiu if I left the job unfinished."

Viktor was running out of possible candidates for departure. "Millie. Don't you have parents somewhere that are worried about you?"

Millie shook her head, nearly upsetting her beret. "Nah. My parents probably haven't been around to check on me in a year or two. My Nana and the butler, they might know I'm gone, but what are they going to do? I'm not going home yet; I'm not through playing with everyone. This is all too much fun."

Flik found himself wondering at that. He'd never found marching through the cold and the rain particularly fun, and that was nothing compared to the constant threats to life and limb.

Barbara spoke again. "So you see; you're stuck with all of us. You should be glad, too. Don't worry so much about how you'll protect us. You'll know what to do when the time comes, okay."

Viktor frowned, not at all pleased that his innermost thoughts were being read so easily. Finally he replied, "Okay."

Their journey recommenced the next morning. About mid-morning the dirt East Road gave way to a wide, slightly raised, cobble-paved highway: the King's Road. Flik had read that the first king of the old Dunan Monarchy, Bernand, had placed the first stones. Some legends even credited him with the building of the entire distance, from Coronet in the south to the Highland border in the north, Greenhill in the west, and…well, none of the legends ever suggested why it stopped short of Toto. Regardless of who built it, the men seemed pleased to get out of the dust of the dirt road. The horses might have had other ideas, but not being able to articulate them, were summarily ignored.

Aside from the mercenaries, there was little evidence of other travelers on this road. Distant forests to the north shimmered in the sunlight, and at one point they passed a sprawling quarry, now long abandoned. Only in the late afternoon, as they entered the more built up areas west of the intersection known as Bernand's Crossing, did Flik finally begin to see people on the road.

They were headed west, a long stream of travelers, towards the distant, but steadily approaching promontory known as Jowston Hill. Actually, hill was a bit of a misnomer. The setting sun had turned the southwest facing, hundred foot high cliffs stark red. The city of Muse sat at the foot of the southern face of the hill, its walled bulk standing out in a sea of buildings and tents all around it. The cliffs ran east and north away from the city, a natural obstacle more than twenty miles long in either direction. Atop the hill, linked by a zigzagging causeway, was the diplomatic heart of the Jowston Alliance, the conference hall. Farther out from the cliff edge were a series of interlinked walls and fortifications, the Ring Forts, which served to deny the heights to any enemies.

The last sliver of the setting sun was visible far off to the west when Flik, Viktor, and the mercenaries arrived at the southern gate of Muse. By city ordinance, the last half-mile of the road had been without any permanent structure, and the men approached the city gates down a broad, tree lined lane flanked by open fields on either side. This was not to say that the fields were empty, for Flik could see the huddled forms of displaced people crowded under each of the trees and long lines spilled out from the gates along the walls. Getting to those gates was no problem; most people were wise enough to get out of the way of the organized mercenaries. Getting through the gates, however, looked to be a bit more work.

"I need to see an entry permit before you enter the city of Muse," a rather bored looking guard spoke, laconically.

Luckily, Hauser had provided Viktor and Flik with just such a piece of parchment. Viktor, after fumbling a bit at his pouch, managed to produce and unfold the germane document.

The guard did not so much as even glance at the paper before he continued. "If you do not have an entry permit, one will be provided to you after you register with the Muse Entry Permit Authority. Entry permits will be given out on a first come, first served basis."

Viktor, clenching his teeth, shoved the entry permit to within three inches of the guard's face, seething, "We have an entry permit. Let us in."

"The current waiting list is sixty-nine thousand, four hundred and seventy-eight. At the current rate of entry permit authorization, you can expect to wait somewhere between four and fifty two months for your authorization. Current Muse Entry Permit Authority hours are from nine to five on weekdays and one to two thirty on Swordsday and Shieldsday. Thank you for visiting Muse City, fair jewel of the Jowston Alliance."

"Enough!" Viktor snatched back the paper and unsheathed his sword. "Let us in you…you blundering excuse for a soldier," he roared, brandishing the blade at the guard's face. The soldier blinked…slowly. Viktor growled. "Soldier, bah, that's too good a word for you. You aren't fit to stand guard over a latrine. You wouldn't know the pointy end of a sword if I came and rammed it up your-"

"Let's not do anything rash," Flik interrupted, noting other Muse soldiers approaching. He heeled his horse closer to Viktor, who looked up at these new arrivals and then contemptuously sheathed his sword. Flik took possession of the permit, saying, "I think reason is our best option here. Besides, I'm sure the next guard we speak with will be a little more…responsive…than the last."

And that next guard was already speaking, in a slightly snarky tone of voice. "You there, what's going on? Don't you know that Entry Permit Authority hours are over?"

Flik put on his most agreeable voice. "I do, but we already have an entry permit, so we'd like to get in."

"Already have an entry permit; I find that highly unlikely." Flik's smile began to slip as this guard waved his halberd around dangerously close to Flik's nose. "Well now, give that here." The guard reached up and snatched the paper out of Flik's hand, perusing it with a couple of skeptical "Mmm-hmmm's." Several of the other soldiers were clustering around, listening to his running commentary. "Let's see here…Viktor of Viktor's Mercenary Army and Flik of the Blue Lightning…are hereby granted unfettered entry and egress to and from the limits of the municipality of Muse City. Well, isn't that grand." He thrust an accusatory finger at Flik. "And which one of you chumps is Viktor?"

The fingers of Flik's sword hand jerked, violently. He tried to cover this up by pretending to fiddle with his tunic. Viktor answered, in a strained tone, "That'd be me."

"Oh really?" The snarky guard glanced over at Viktor. "How do I know that you are who you say you are? Maybe you're some sort of bandit trash that's pretending to be Viktor's Mercenary Army, hmm. You certainly look the part."

"Well, I…" Viktor looked towards Flik, as if he had the answer.

Flik, for his part, was busy wrestling down his right arm with his left, while the various parts of his face began to twitch.

"I suppose that you must be the one calling yourself Flik of the Blue Lightning," the snarky guard continued, looking back towards Flik. "Honestly, I've had it up to here with all of these sad cases trying to get into the city. Just two days ago I had to run off some pug nosed, shrimpy, tomboy girl and her friends. Really, I don't think you're worthy of Flik of the Static Electricity myself, so-"

There was a blinding flash of light and a sudden crashing boom followed by a resounding gong as the snarky guard was bounced off the gates by a well played beam of electricity. The remaining guards -save for the unresponsive one- looked in awed astonishment as little crackling lightning bolts played across Flik's right hand as he pulled it into a fist. "Now," he rasped sharply, "open those gates."

"What happened to not doing anything rash?" Viktor chuckled and watched as the astonished guards fell over one another in a rush to unbar the doors. "So, what now? I'm all for seeing Anabelle immediately, but we really ought to see to the men first."

Leona approached with a ready answer. "I know the owner of an inn near this gate. It's not an upscale establishment, but I think I can beg some rooms off of her." She looked back at the assembled mercenaries. "But not enough rooms for everybody."

Flik nodded and then motioned over Rossgard. Pointing towards the open field, Flik said, "Take the men and set camp there. Viktor and I will go in and see about more permanent quarters."

"Sir." Rossgard wheeled his horse around and the line of men and carts began to move off the road.

Flik looked back at the gates. They were now open, flanked by two lines of obsequious looking guards. He rode in, followed by Viktor, the women, the cart with the strongbox, and the rest of Riou's recruits. It was now fully nighttime and there was little traffic on the city streets. The main thoroughfares were well lit, but the narrow blackness of alleys spoke of their own particular dangers. The inn was located at an intersection, just past a blocky watch building. It was a modest two-story building of wood and brick, windows full of bright lights and babbling voices.

There were also two bulky looking men at the door. One of them fingered a cudgel, saying "Got no room for riffraff like you. Move along before we call the watch."

Before Viktor or Flik could speak, Leona had jumped down from the cart and swept towards the men. "How dare you treat potential guests so?" she berated. "Is this how the owner of the establishment pays you to act; to scare off the customers?" The two guards shrank back a little, unsure how to handle matters. "I should march right in there and give Emma a piece of my mind."

Luckily for the guards, at that moment the door to the inn swung open and a rather short, stout woman stepped outside. "Is that you, Leona?" she asked, and then answered herself with, "Of course it is. Who else would be outside my inn, shrieking at the top of her lungs?"

"Shrieking?" Leona responded, with a smile on her face. "I never shriek; I was just putting some men in their places, that's all."

Then the two old friends fell into an embrace, Leona having to stoop a little to make up for the height differences. "Oh Leona, I'm relieved to see that you're safe," Emma said. "When I heard that Toto had been burned, I could hardly sleep worrying about you. But yes, you'd taken up with some mercenaries, that's right." Emma stepped out of the embrace, carefully perusing Flik and the others, her happy smile shrinking somewhat. She looked back at Leona and then leaned close to her. "They got any money?" she asked, in what probably passed as a whisper for her. "I mean, I'll always put up an old friend, but-"

"Don't worry, ma'am, we've got potch enough to pay the way." To prove the point, Flik pulled out a string of potch, the little coins strung together through a hole in the middle of each.

Emma's eyes danced as she watched the coins jingle back and forth. "Of course, I mean, I wasn't implying that you…well, you're mercenaries after all." She shook her head. "Never mind, let's get you all settled in." She clapped her hands, ordering one of the bouncers to go and fetch the stable hands. Then they were ducking through the doorway into the interior. "We're a little crowded," Emma said, "because of all the refugees, but I'll chase some people out of their rooms and we'll find you all places to stay."

Flik looked around. A little crowded was something of an understatement. Every table in the common room seemed to have five or six people gathered round it. More patrons were going up and down the stairs.

"Do you have hot water for baths?" Leona asked.

Emma rolled her eyes. "My dear, what sort of establishment do you think I'm running? Of course I have hot water." She clapped her hands again and a maid, a girl of about sixteen or seventeen years, ran up. "Yuki, draw some water for the tubs, quickly, and make sure it's hot this time." The girl squeaked and ran off. Emma turned back to her new guests. "So, will you eat first or bathe first?"

Actually, there weren't enough tubs to accommodate all of the travelers, so the men ate first and the women bathed first, which more or less satisfied everyone. The food was filling, though Flik noted that the vegetables were all aged and shriveled and the meat was fairly tough.

Afterwards it was time for the bath. Flik's clothes were so dirty that he was tempted to jump into the water fully clothed, but he relented, disrobed, and washed himself. The bath was relaxing, at least until Viktor decided to start a water war, which Rikimaru willingly joined in. The stone floor of the room was soon soaked with a fine sheen of steamy water. Then Gengen showed up to wash. A moment later, Flik got up to leave; there was little he liked less than the smell of wet Kobold. However, where he had left his clothes there was nothing now but a slightly sodden towel.

He sighed; with no better choice, he pulled the towel around as much as he could and stepped out into the chilly corridor beyond. He got no farther than the first intersection before he came across Leona and Millie, who were both carrying linens. Leona chuckled and regarded him with a bemused half-smile. Millie stared openly, then blushed and pretended to look aside. Flik fought to keep from blushing himself. It was a valiant but futile battle.

"Where…are my clothes?" Flik asked, when he could no longer keep the blood out of his cheeks.

"They reeked," Leona answered. "I thought about having them all burned, but we're washing them instead." Flik now noticed that both Leona and Millie had changed outfits. The older woman was wearing an ill-tailored forest-green dress that did not go with her complexion and was really too short for her. Millie was wearing an extra maid's outfit. Bonaparte was resting contentedly on top of the linens in her arms.

"What am I supposed to wear?" Flik asked.

"Men!" Leona answered. "Take away their clothes and they're nothing but big babies. Don't worry, they'll be ready by tomorrow. Oh, and watch where you drip, Emma won't be happy if you ruin the finishing on her floors." With that, Leona and Millie moved along, heading up some stairs. At the last instant, Millie turned back momentarily to drink in some more beefcake. Flik, meanwhile, glanced down at the little pool of bath water forming at his feet.

As promised, the clothes were ready the next morning. There was also an official messenger from the Office of the Mayor of Muse City, bearing an invitation for an audience with said Mayor of Muse City. Viktor and Flik set out on foot after breakfast. Already the city was bustling, full of people and horses and carriages and carts, all travelling down streets covered with little pink flower petals. The war had not yet affected commerce, and Flik saw merchants hawking fish from Lake Dunan and the oceans, as well as sugarcane grown in distant Middleport and fine wines imported from Kanakan.

The day was pleasant and the city smells and sounds, which might have been unnerving to some, were relaxing to Flik. Danger seemed far off, and he hardly noted when he bumped into a blond haired man wearing a hooded long gray cloak. He could've sworn there was something familiar about that man, but the press of the crowds bore them apart, and he had other duties to attend to.

About midmorning they arrived at the building that housed the executive branch of the Muse government. It was set back from the street on a raised terrace, with small gardens flanking the paths to the entrance. The front of the building was a columned portico, with windows facing out into the street. There were no guards in evidence at the front doors, so Viktor and Flik let themselves in. The foyer, inside, was muted and dark in comparison to the streets. In the distance Flik thought he heard quiet conversation and the constant clacking of countless pencils. Likewise, unobtrusive officials scurried about, carrying stacks of papers and books. No one seemed to notice, let alone care about, the two mercenaries with weapons at their sides who stood, unattended, in the heart of Jowston.

Flik looked around. "So, what now?" he asked, feeling the urge to keep his voice down.

"This way," Viktor motioned, leading them towards a grand stairway that led up to the second level. More clerks moved about in the artificial twilight of the upper floor. To Flik, it seemed like the choreography of some languid, alien dance. Viktor was already walking towards a smaller hallway off to one side.

It was there, finally, that a bespectacled functionary intercepted them. "What are you two doing here?" he asked, officiously. "Military matters are to be taken care of in room one thirty-seven."

"Invitation," Viktor glowered, presenting the letter.

The bureaucrat scrutinized the letter, gently pushing his glasses up his long, thin nose. He coughed, once, in what Flik thought was surprise, and then pocketed the paper. "The Mayor is in a very important conference right now. I will announce your arrival, but don't expect that she will have much time for ruffians like you. Please wait in room two hundred and twelve."

Flik didn't feel much like waiting. He suspected Viktor didn't either. Instead, as soon as the little man darted down the hallway, they followed him. In this manner, he led them to the door of the office of the Mayor. At the door he stopped, looked back, noted Viktor and Flik, sighed, and entered the room. They, on the other hand, were polite enough to wait outside. Moments later, the bureaucrat scampered back out the door, a fearful look in his eyes.

"Y-You may enter, sir."

"Thank you," Viktor offered, slapping the man hard on the back. Flik closed the door behind them, and then they were face to face with the Mayor of Muse.

She had already stepped around her desk, leaving her two aides dumbfounded in her wake. She strode determinedly towards Viktor, her arms coming up to embrace him, but she stopped just short of that, as if suddenly aware that they were not alone. There was a moment of awkward silence as the two of them gazed at each other, eye to eye, Anabelle's natural height augmented slightly by the heels of her boots.

"I'm back," Viktor said, a goofy smile breaking out on his face.

She hesitated between a frown and a smile, finally settling halfway between the two. "You don't know how worried I've been over you," she said, struggling to keep some harshness in her voice. "I didn't send you into East Muse on a suicide mission. You never should've tried to take on Luca Blight's army." She shook her head slightly; the long, thick, fiery curls trailing down to her waist exaggerated the motion.

Lesser men might have quailed under her gaze; Viktor's smile never faltered. "I had to make a pretense of defending, didn't I? Besides, it's not like I was going to let myself get killed."

Now she did frown, a little. "You never change, do you? I've known you for more than ten years and you still think nothing will ever harm you. There's nothing more foolish than meaningless bravado." Flik considered what Viktor had told him of their pervious relationship. They had met shortly after the destruction of Viktor's hometown, North Window, while she'd been investigating rumors of conflict between South Window and Two Rivers. All things considered, Flik had concluded that neither she nor Viktor was the type to hold anything back, in conflict or in any other facet of life.

Viktor's smile became still broader, now growing teeth. "Well, if something does ever harm me, you'll be the first to know."

Anabelle's response came like the striking of a snake; her unfolding arm propelling her hand, palm first, straight into Viktor's sternum before he'd even begun to try and ward the blow. Flik winced, watching as the muscles in her bare arm rippled with the impact. Viktor stumbled backwards, thumping his back hard against the door, and began coughing earnestly.

"My lady!" one of the two attendants gasped, a small, reedy young man with a mop of brown hair on his head. This, Flik knew, was Jess, Lady Anabelle's Vice-Mayor. He also handled most of her correspondence. Indeed, he was holding several sheaves of paper up against his gray vest even as he spoke.

The other attendant, a shifty looking man in a long green tunic and gray pants, nervously adjusted the red headband that held his brown hair in check. He was Fitcher, the man charged with overseeing Muse's foreign relations. He looked as though he were trying to find some way to safely leap out the window that he had backed up to.

Gradually, Viktor's coughs became laughs, and he continued to laugh until he wheezed out of breath. "Ouch," he gasped. "You've been keeping in shape."

Anabelle laughed, crossing her arms across her blue shirt in such a manner as to show that though she had been a tomboy years ago, she was now very much a mature woman- very much. "You can stop hamming it up, Viktor. The only part of you that's thicker than your chest is your head."

Viktor made a sound somewhere between a chuckle and a snort. Turning to Flik, he said, "You see what I have to put up with? I always envied you and Odessa, you two got along so well. This woman, she's all sharp edges."

"Hmm. I don't remember you saying anything like that the last time you were here," Anabelle retorted, mock-sweetly, though still smiling.

Flik closed his eyes. "Odessa had her core of steel, too," he heard himself say. "She wore her cheerfulness and optimism like a garment, to hide the cares and worries of her position."

When he opened his eyes he found, much to his chagrin, that everyone was looking at him. Anabelle's smile was now sympathetic. "Yes, I understand. Leadership in battle is trying on anyone, but more so for a woman. I'm surrounded by people just waiting for me to slip up, show the slightest sign of weakness, that they might sweep in and strip me of all authority." She laughed ruefully. "And that's just within my own city walls."

"Your recent defeat did not help matters in those regards," Jess snapped, safely behind Anabelle's desk.

Viktor frowned, but then hung his head. "Jess!" Anabelle barked.

"Sorry, my lady." Jess stepped back, abashed.

Anabelle sighed. "The promissory note, if you would," she commanded. Jess scurried forward and, disdaining Viktor, pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it to Flik.

Flik felt his eyes go wide; he'd never seen so many zeroes on one piece of paper. "Th-This is for us?" he blurted out.

Anabelle laughed again, almost mournfully. "For years I begged and pleaded and cajoled the Senate for every potch of military spending that they would give me. Only now, now that they can see the smoke still rising off their precious summer cottages and hideaways, now they will give me the money I ask for and more. And do you know why? Not because they expect me to win, no, but because they expect me to lose. So that they can say to the angry voters, after all the deprivation and hardship and suffering, that they gave me all the support needed to win the war, and that it was my incompetence that lost it."

Viktor growled. "You're not going to lose the war. Not while I'm around."

Anabelle smiled. "At least I can count on the knowledge that you will always be giving your best effort. You, too, Flik. This war isn't yours at all, but I rely on you to keep Viktor safe." Flik felt himself blush. Anabelle handed some more papers to Viktor. "You'll quarter your men in the Dawn Fort, the farthest east. I need your best efforts to guard the road from the north. Highland may attempt to bypass the forts from the east and attack the city directly. If they do so, you are to report any attempt and thwart it if it lies within your capabilities."

"Consider it already done," Viktor replied.

"Um…we need to ask them about the son of Genkaku," Fitcher nervously interrupted.

Viktor glanced quizzically at Fitcher. It was not that Viktor didn't know who Genkaku was. He had been a general for Muse in the time of Anabelle's father, the Mayor Darrel, who had fought against Highland in the wars almost twenty-five years ago. By his efforts, and those of Highland general Han Cunningham, a peace treaty had been negotiated. However, through the scheming of Mayor Darrel, Genkaku had been forced to choose between his country and his honor. He chose to retain his honor, and had retired to Kyaro village at the end of the conflict. The confusion stemmed from the fact that none of the stories about him, as far as Flik could recall, ever mentioned a son.

"Yes, thank you Fitcher," Anabelle said. "That nearly slipped my mind." She turned to address Flik again. "You wrote of a certain Riou from Kyaro, who had witnessed a staged attack on his unit, the Unicorn Brigade. Is he with you in Muse?"

Flik shook his head. "No, he, and several other children from Kyaro, have been missing since the fort fell. I hope they're headed towards Muse."

Fitcher pounded the wall in frustration. "That's not going to help our cause at The Hilltop Conference."

Anabelle sighed. "We had hoped that Riou might shed some light on the incident that precipitated the current fighting. It is proving…difficult…to get firm commitments of support from the other members of the Alliance. Proof that we were not the aggressors would've gone a long way in building up support for us among the other cities."

"Wait," Viktor said. "Are you saying that Riou is Genkaku's son?"

Anabelle glanced at the floor, and then completely away from Viktor. "After my father drove him out of Muse, Genkaku adopted two orphans of the war. They went to live in Kyaro. I always wanted to apologize to him for what my father…my father-" She couldn't speak any more, but hugged herself and shuddered.

Both Viktor and Jess lunged towards her, from opposite ends of the room. They both, when seeing the other, pulled up short, casting dark looks at each other. Flik hung back, unsure of himself. Fitcher had turned away, gazing fixedly out the window.

Finally, voice straining with effort, Anabelle spoke again, almost in a whisper. "Do you know what they said about my father, over their glasses of wine at their dinner parties, when they thought I was not listening?"

"My lady," Jess tried to interrupt, but Anabelle continued, heedless.

"They always say that there is no way that such a deformed, shriveled husk of a man could ever have been the father of such a giant ogress of a daughter."

"You shouldn't-" Jess creaked vainly.

Anabelle put the steel back in her voice. "They say that my mother must've dallied with some barbarian from the Nameless Lands to the north. That is what they say."

"-speak-"

Anabelle cut Jess off again, this time by bringing her fist down on her desk, splintering one of it's legs. "My father may have been a contemptible coward, but I am sure that he was mine. And do you know-" She stopped again, swaying. Viktor reached out, trying to embrace her, but she swatted his arms away, meeting his gaze with blue eyes that glinted like metal. "Do you know why? Because we both share the same fierce drive to fight, that's why. I understand why he did those things, even if I can't approve. He could never stop fighting, to the point of creating his own enemies so that he could continue." She paused again, momentarily. When she continued, her voice was again a mere whisper. "And I'll keep fighting, too. Even if it's hopeless. Even if my death were a certainty, I'd still reach for some weapon, because I…have…to-"

Viktor managed to wrap his arms around her, muffling her sobs against his chest. Flik turned away, suddenly remembering the times when he had shared Odessa's tears, moments that had been for the two of them alone.

"You shouldn't speak of things like that," Jess finally whispered, plaintively.


	12. Chapter 12 Settled In

**Chapter 12 – Settled In**

"Idiots! Idiots and cowards, the lot of them."

Viktor was not in a good mood. Flik winced as he slammed his mug of beer down on the table, again. A small pond of the alcoholic beverage was inching its way towards Flik's seat. Actually, his mug was now completely empty and he was unlikely to be getting any more drinks this night. This stemmed from the fact that his roaring had scared all the waitresses, not to mention many of the patrons, off to the far side of the room. Still, it had been a long time since Flik had seen his friend worked into such a lather.

Carefully, he considered the right choice of words to calm Viktor down. "Yes, but now we're here, right? All we can do is to do our very best for Lady Anabelle."

It didn't help. "Damn right!" Viktor responded, swinging his cup around in a wild gesture. "That is exactly what we're going to do, you and I. First we'll run those Highlanders back across the border, and then we'll roust out all the rats biting at Anabelle's heels. And then, when that's done, she and I will-"

Flik never did get to hear exactly what Viktor was planning, because at that moment he bashed his elbow right into the head of a nearby man. All Flik could make out was a mop of blond hair before the newcomer, knocked into unconsciousness, collapsed into a heap on the floor. Viktor, who was sitting closer to the stranger, remained motionless, staring glassy-eyed at the offending limb as if to ask, "Now why did you go and do that?"

Since Viktor wasn't moving, and no one else in the inn was brave enough to approach, Flik got out of his chair to check on the man. He was of a height with Flik, with a whipcord leanness to his build. He was dressed in light gray pants and a darker jacket, with a sweater wrapped jauntily about his shoulders, and a knife sheathed on his hip. He had an exotic look, possibly Harmonian, Flik judged, based on his blond hair, thin nose, and sharp blue eyes, which were open despite the loss of consciousness. Was he some sort of Harmonian merchant, Flik wondered.

He looked up. Leona was approaching, with a young teenage boy in tow. There was something familiar about the kid, Flik noted, looking at the chin length dirty blond hair that spilled out on either side of his cylindrical blue cap.

"Here he is. This big lug knocked his block off." The boy squatted down, placing his hands on his knees just above his blue knee socks and just below his pleated gray shorts, as he tried to get a closer look at the Harmonian.

Leona rounded on Viktor. "I have had just about enough of you," she said, raising her voice. "What do you think you're doing, shouting loud enough to raise the dead, and now hurting a customer? I'm working day and night so that you people can eat and sleep here and all you can do is abuse your welcome. I've half a mind to get the bouncers in here to throw you out onto the street. And don't think they couldn't do it, given the state you're in. Maybe a night sleeping on the cobblestones will sober you up."

Viktor despondently looked down at the puddle of beer on the table. "I didn't mean to hit him," he answered, in a small voice.

Leona sighed. "Of course you didn't mean to hit him, but it happened all the same." She continued in a somewhat gentler voice. "If you really want to help Anabelle, the first thing you need to do is keep your head clear. The clumsiness of a drunk mercenary does nothing for her reputation, especially if you're going to keep yelling about your relationship at the top of your lungs." When Viktor didn't answer, Leona turned towards Flik and, gesturing towards the insensate Harmonian, said, "Come on, I'll need your help dragging this guy to his room."

Flik looked over at Viktor, who was still staring down at the table. He put his hand on Viktor's shoulder and said, "Hey, I'll be right back, okay." Viktor nodded in mute response.

Then, stepping around to get into the best position to hoist the Harmonian, Flik grabbed him by the shoulders and lifted him off the ground. Leona, at his legs, snapped, "Support the neck!" He considered this for a moment and then squeezed his elbows uncomfortably together to provide a headrest. Leona frowned, but didn't comment, and they began carrying the Harmonian upstairs, with the boy in the lead.

About halfway up the stairs, Flik remembered who that boy was. "So, Templeton, are you still trying to map the entire world?" he asked, as they tried to maneuver the Harmonian around a corner.

"You know this kid?" Leona asked, as they finally got him around.

It was Templeton who answered. "Yeah, I was in the Liberation Army during the war two years ago. Uh, not that I did a lot of fighting." He paused and pointed an accusatory finger at Flik. "You two were supposed to be dead," he declared. "Then you go and build that silly fortress out in the middle of East Muse. I had to update all of my maps, but now, because of this stupid war, they're all out of date again."

Flik chuckled. "Still the same as ever. Things change, though. You just can't help it. Odessa had some maps from when Gregminster was still a part of Harmonia, and it was called Rupanda. She even had part of a map of ancient Aronia. At least, she thought it was ancient Aronia; no one could ever read the letters on it."

"Now those are some maps I'd love to see." Templeton sighed.

Flik and Leona finally got the Harmonian to an empty bedroom. Though it was unlit, the two moons -both Scarlet and Blue were past half full- provided more than enough light to see. Gently, they placed the Harmonian onto one of the beds.

Leona looked doubtfully at the man in the bed and then back up at Templeton, standing in the doorframe. "You traveling with this guy?"

"Yeah, he looks like a rogue, but he's harmless enough. I've got a knack for picking out the right people to travel with."

Leona glanced over at Flik, seeking confirmation. Flik shrugged. "He's been doing this since he was eleven, so I guess he's got some sense." Then he turned to speak to Templeton. "Listen, though, if you ever get in trouble, you come find us. We can take you on until things blow over." Leona nodded in affirmation.

"I know what I'm doing," he answered, with a young man's pride. "You just make sure Highland doesn't come along and burn anything else, you got that?"

Flik laughed. "Well, there's something that I can see to. While we're at it, why don't you cut that hair? You still look like a girl."

"I like my hair just fine," Templeton responded, sulkily.

Viktor was snoring away when Flik woke the following morning. After getting dressed, he briefly wondered if he ought to go and check on Templeton, but decided against it. Flik knew full well about the pride of an independent-minded youth, having been one himself. Instead, after eating breakfast, he went out to the field beyond the city gates where the men were encamped. It was there that he found Rossgard who had a piece of interesting news.

"Sir, one of the men thought he saw Riou's group at the gates last evening. He didn't get a real good look, though, and then the guards hauled them off somewhere."

Flik felt a certain glad relief trickle through him. "That is good news. Viktor and I will go get them. Meanwhile, I want you to get the men ready to move. We've been assigned to the Dawn Fort, up on the hill. I want to get the men settled in and back to their routines as quickly as possible. Understand?"

"Sir," Rossgard nodded.

Later in the morning, when Viktor had finally woken up and ruffled his hair into a slightly more presentable mess, the two of them began their search for Riou and the rest of them. They began at the guardhouse right across the street, which, to Flik's thinking, was as good a place as any to begin the investigation, or at least the closest.

"Yeah, we nabbed some people fitting that description," a graying, rather drawn guard captain said after Flik had explained the situation. "We threw 'em all into the lockup to let 'em cool down. I suppose we'll escort 'em back out into the pool sometime today, let 'em wait for a legit permit just like everybody else."

"We're taking custody of them," Viktor announced, slapping the contract that Anabelle had given him down on the desk. He followed this with a rather large bag of potch. "You'll release them into my care."

Flik closed his eyes. This was all a rather elaborate bluff, as neither he nor Viktor had much authority as mere mercenary captains. Certainly, they didn't have any say in the movement of prisoners in Muse's justice system. Now, did the guard captain care enough to contest this?

The captain didn't even bother to look down at his desk. "Fine, but you'll have to sign some documents before I release 'em. Proper procedure and all."

Viktor chuckled grimly. "Indeed. I know all about proper procedure."

Only then did the captain pocket the potch. Flik sighed.

Thirty minutes later, one of the captain's subordinates led them to the proper cell. Walking in, Flik could see that it wasn't terribly big, containing only a wooden cot, a mat on the floor, and a wooden bucket. It also contained Riou, Jowy, Nanami, and Pilika all looking rather dingy and worse for wear. They looked up dumbly at Viktor and Flik.

Viktor, finding the proper mood, started laughing. Finally, he said, "Don't look so down, we're here to spring you."

Nanami jumped up. "About time, you big jerk! Hurry up, I need a bath!" She jabbed a finger into Viktor's chest. He found that funny, too.

Flik turned to the guard, who was regarding the scene rather sardonically. "Yeah, these are the ones, and their companions in the other cell, and the wolf, too."

"You sure?" the guard commented. "I mean, we can keep them locked up a little longer, if you'd like."

Viktor continued to laugh, now in the process of blowing a snot bubble out of his nose. He wheezed to a stop and rubbed his nose, finally saying, "Not bad, not bad, you're all okay. You sure took you're time, though. We were all starting to get worried, especially the girls."

Riou nodded as a response, calmly stretching out his muscles. Jowy also stood up and answered, "We had quite an adventure, detouring all over the place, back and forth. I feel like I've run my legs off." He smiled, though, suggesting boundless enthusiasm.

Flik took a moment to study the two boys. There was something different about them, more so than just a trek through the wilderness would account for. They had both acquired strong runic auras from somewhere. Very strong runes, possibly even stronger than his lightning rune. He shook his head. "You all certainly look like you've had quite the adventure. Let's get out of here. You can tell us all about it at Leona's new tavern, after you've had something to eat and baths too."

Nanami practically whooped for joy. Viktor spoke up in her wake. "After that, I'll take Riou and Jowy over to meet Lady Anabelle. She wanted to see them, after all."

"What, us?" Jowy asked, a little dazed at the sudden turn of events.

Nanami, however, was not in the least bit dazed. "I'm coming too. It's not fair to leave me behind," she exclaimed.

Viktor chuckled. "Fine, fine, you can come too, you little tomboy," he said, with the air of one making a great concession.

Nanami stuck out her tongue as a retort.

Over lunch, the three of them, well, mostly Nanami, breathlessly described their flight from the fort up to Toto, where Pilika had guided them into her father's shrine.

Jowy took up the thread from there. "Riou and I went over to examine some writing on the stone in the back and then we were…teleported into another part of the cave. There was this beautiful woman, with black hair and a jewel in her forehead, and she was dressed in robes of blue and purple. She called herself the Arbiter of the Balance."

Viktor blinked in amazement. Flik sputtered, "Leknaat?"

Jowy did not catch on to their shock, but continued with, "Yeah, that's what she said her name was. She offered us power, the power to command destiny, and we…well, we accepted. I got this Black Sword Rune and Riou's got a Bright Shield Rune."

Flik struggled to keep the awe out of his voice. "May I-May I see them?" Riou and Jowy exchanged glances and then placed their right hands out on the table, so Flik could clearly see the runes embedded therein. He studied them carefully, clearly noting that they were unlike the common runes, such as his lightning rune, that one could buy and have embedded by a Runemaster. Still, the little triangular shield on Riou's hand and the little sword on Jowy's hand did not look terribly ominous, not at all like the Soul Eater that Tir McDohl still possessed.

"What do you think?" Viktor asked, in a hushed tone.

"I'm no expert in runic lore," Flik answered, and then paused for a long moment. "There is definitely power in those runes." Jowy looked almost gleefully at his hand, while Riou nodded quietly. Flik continued speaking, though. "Listen to me!" he barked. "This isn't something to be taken lightly. Nothing ever is, where Leknaat is involved. This kind of power can redound upon you, causing immeasurable pain if you're not careful with it. She has clearly given these runes to you, but I would advise that you only use them under the most dire of circumstances, and not to let too many know about them. That's what I've got to say."

He looked up at Riou and Jowy. Nanami was now regarding the runes much as she might two cobras at that distance. Jowy seemed to be debating whether or not to find a knife to try and chop off his hand. Even Riou looked a little green around the gills.

Viktor slapped the two boys on the back. "Don't worry about it too much. You'll figure out what to do with them. After all, Tir McDohl did."

Flik considered that statement for a moment. Given all that had happened to the bearer of the Soul Eater, the idea of figuring out the use for such a power didn't seem terribly comforting to him.

After lunch, and after depositing a rather somber Pilika in the care of Leona, Viktor departed with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami. They all seemed very excited at the prospect of meeting the Mayor of Muse; indeed, their concern over the runes appeared to have been subsumed entirely. Flik shook his head as they all disappeared out the doors. Well, they were still children after all; let them forget the cares of the world for a while.

Flik had his own cares to deal with, namely getting the men to their new home. The guards at the city gates looked dubiously at the prospect of letting four hundred armed mercenaries march through their fine city, but he finally prevailed on them to let the mercenaries through. In retrospect, he decided, it really would've been more convenient to have marched them all the way around the base of the cliffs to the fort. Most of the men, having been recruited off the farms of East Muse, had never been in a city the size of Muse before. They reacted in a predictable manner, gawking at everything and threatening to scatter in a hundred different directions at the sight of anything interesting. The fact that the civilian crowds were thoroughly unimpressed by the mercenaries didn't help matters much. With stoic indifference they clogged every street and the local vendors, much like vultures, circled the formation eagerly, looking to separate the men and their potch.

In the late afternoon the formation finally found itself at the top of the causeway, near the conference hall, the city sprawling out below them like a tiny scale model of itself. Flik paused the march to consult with a few of the guards outside the hall. The mercenaries clustered around a nearby monument to the victory of the famous Mayor Jowstone over the Highlanders in the year three-fourteen.

"Dawn Fort?" one of the guards responded, when Flik asked for directions. "You've got quite a bit of marching ahead of you. About fifteen miles…in that direction." The guard jerked his thumb down the paved road leading to the east. The mercenaries, or at least a large portion of them, groaned in anticipation. The guard smirked. "You'd better get started."

They did, marching off with the setting sun at their backs. The two moons were up, though, and both near full, so the march was not made in darkness. Still, a chilly northwesterly wind rose up, wafting clouds in and out of the moonlight. Over his right shoulder, Flik noted the lesser lights of Muse City receding into the distance, and the men marched through a night gone surprisingly still. Flik, riding his horse, slipped into a doze in the saddle.

And jerked awake an indeterminate amount of time later, pulled out of his slumber by a sudden, light tugging at his sleeve.

"Sir?" the voice was Rossgard's. Flik blinked awake, making out the shadowy bulk of a fortification in front of him. The two moons were at his back now, rapidly slipping below the horizon. There was a bit of a mist in the chilly pre-dawn air. "We've arrived, sir," Rossgard clarified. "But there's a bit of a problem."

"Hmm?" Flik shook out the cobwebs from his head. "What problem?"

"The guards at the gate; they want to see our orders before they hand over the keys."

"Well…that's normal, I suppose. Let's see them."

Them turned out to be a pair of sentries flanking a portly lieutenant. The lieutenant took a step forward at Flik's arrival, attempting to puff out his chest in an attempt to look intimidating. Actually, all that happened was that his gut sagged lower over his belt. "State your business, man," he wheezed.

Flik dismounted, presenting Anabelle's orders. "Lady Anabelle has assigned us to the Dawn Fort, with full responsibility in this sector of the Ring Forts. I hope there'll be no problems with this."

The lieutenant snatched the papers away, squinting through the darkness in an attempt to read the orders. Finally, one of the sentries was sent in to fetch a light. By candlelight, the lieutenant muttered over the orders. "Mercenary Army, huh? You're those fools that got crushed in East Muse, right?"

Taking a deep breath, Flik replied, "Yes."

The lieutenant thrust the papers back into Flik's hands. "Only reason you've still got a contract is because you're the Mayor's lover," he hissed, jabbing a meaty finger into Flik's chest.

Flik snorted, suddenly glad that he'd decided to do this, rather than letting Viktor. Viktor would probably have twisted this guy's head off. "If I were Lady Anabelle's lover, do you think I'd be up here at this time of night?"

"Give them the keys," the lieutenant snapped. One of the sentries stepped forward, handing over several brass keys on a ring. "Lot of good it's going to do us," the lieutenant continued. "You mercenaries are all alike; you'll probably cut and run at the first sign of trouble."

Flik smiled, despite the blood rushing through his body. "You're confidence is most appreciated. I'm sure you, too, will provide a most…heroic performance on the field of battle."

The lieutenant grimaced, did a smart about face, and stalked back towards the fort, presumably to gather his men. Flik didn't follow to find out, but turned to see to the ordering of his men. Unfortunately, the interior of the fort was a mess and, before Flik could track him down, the lieutenant and his men had scurried off to their new post. Thus, Flik and the men spent the hours of early morning working to put the fort into some kind of living condition. Midway through this operation, he simply collapsed into one of the beds that he'd just put to rights, falling asleep instantly.

It was Rossgard who woke him again, sometime in the afternoon. "Sir, thought you ought to have some food, sir," he said, offering some dried meat, cheese, and bread on a plate.

Flik listened to his stomach growl; it wasn't fancy fare, but it was food. He ate. "How are the men?" he asked.

"Sir, we are having them stand down at the moment. They're all a bit exhausted, at any rate." Rossgard smiled now, as if to suggest that nobody was too upset that their leader had collapsed on the job.

Flik laughed. "Well then, you should be at ease, too." Rossgard nodded, and slipped into a textbook at-ease position. Then, however, he shrugged and, sitting down on another bed, pulled off his helmet. Flik regarded him; the hair on the top of his head was still black, but a definite bald spot had appeared at the crown of his head. His mustache, on the other hand, had long since gone gray. His face was full of creases and wrinkles.

"You were in my unit in the Liberation Army, weren't you?" Flik asked, though it was more a statement of fact than a question. "Even before Tir McDohl became the leader."

"Yes," he smiled. "I was there when Achilles called us together…way back in the beginning."

Flik nodded. "But that's all over. You don't need to be here, if you don't mind my saying so."

Rossgard shrugged and then ran a hand through his hair. "Well, there isn't much else I can do. I was born on a farm, tenth of thirteen children, so I don't have any inheritance. I didn't learn any letters, except for what I've learned while fighting. I don't know much math, besides the basics. About all I do know is horses…and I've learned how to fight from the back of one. Besides, who'd look after the men if I left?"

Flik chuckled. "Who, indeed?"

"Now, if _you_ don't mind my asking. Why are you here? I know you're not happy about going back home, but you could certainly do better than this. You could go back to the Toran Republic and they'd offer you just about any position you asked for. Or you could do anything else you wanted, like go into the trading business, or something. There's no reason for you to crawl around in the muck like some ranker, begging your pardon."

Flik looked up through one of the narrow windows, watching the light from the westerly sun. "They don't need me back in the Republic," he answered. "They've got plenty of competent generals. Besides, I could never spend my days sitting behind a desk in Gregminster; I get restless if I'm not out helping people. That's all." He shrugged.

"Not a lot of potch in helping people, sir."

"No," Flik mused. "I suppose there isn't. Well, maybe there are things that I think are more important than money."

Rossgard chuckled. "You might even be right, sir. Heck of a philosophy for a mercenary, though."


	13. Chapter 13 Time is Like a Thief

**Chapter 13 – Time is Like a Thief**

The following morning was chilly and gray. Flik, after a meeting with the senior sergeants, departed from the Dawn Fort, heading back towards Muse City, escorted by a squad of cavalrymen. The wind up on the plateau was wild and fierce, out of the northwest, and filled with drizzle. Flik wrapped himself in his blue cape and ducked his head against the breeze. Hours passed; the wind shifted around to the southwest, bringing with it a steadier, warmer rain. By the time they got down the causeway and back into the city proper, it was well into late afternoon. The streets were more subdued today, and he wasted no time in heading towards their destination -Leona's tavern.

With practiced precision, Flik and his men stabled the horses: brushing them down, checking their hooves, making sure there was food and properly prepared water. Finished, they walked around to enter the inn, only to find Leona and Millie blocking the way.

"I hope you're not thinking of entering in the state you're in. Look at you, you're all dripping water." Flik glanced at his men; well, her statement certainly was true. Luckily, the women had brought towels and the men, after peeling off most of their armor, were able to dry off.

"So, what's new?" Flik asked, handing his towel over to Leona.

She looked at the towel disdainfully. "Well, you're hair is a mess." She smiled, Millie giggled, Flik shrugged. As they walked through the doorway, Leona continued. "Viktor spent yesterday arguing with various officials, trying to get supplies and weapons." She sighed. "Nothing seems to work around here without ostentatious bribes."

The interior of the inn was warm, bright, and dry. Taking a deep breath, Flik savored the smells of bread and meat cooking. Finally, he responded to Leona with, "That's true."

Leona frowned, considering her next piece of news. "Also, Riou came by the day you went up to the fort saying that Jess had sent them on a spying mission. I sent Hanna, Kinnison, and Shiro with them, but I'm not sure when they're supposed to be back."

Flik ground his teeth. "I'd hoped to keep them out of the fighting. What are they thinking up there in the Mayor's office?"

Leona shook her head. "I don't think they were forced to do it. They, or at least Riou and Jowy, seemed pretty enthusiastic about the whole idea."

"Foolish kids," Flik muttered. "They have no idea what they're getting themselves into."

"Well, all we can do is wait and see." They arrived at the table where Viktor was sitting. As usual, the other patrons had given him a wide berth. Casually, Flik pulled a chair around and sat down. Leona departed, carrying away her stack of now soiled towels.

"So, the men settled in?" Viktor asked, looking up from his beer.

"Well, we had some problems getting the fort turned over, but all of that's been taken care of. How about you; I hear you had some problems with supplies."

This was all Viktor needed to get going. "You'd better believe it," he began. "I don't think I've ever dealt with such a useless bunch of pencil pushers. Each one of them thinks he's a little lord, guarding his precious domain against all intruders, and none of them can pull their heads out so far as to begin to see the big picture. I'm sure they'd still be there, unwilling to release even a bent sword, if Highland were marching through the city burning everything." Viktor was frothing by the end of his speech. Leona came by, set down a beer in front of Flik, and rolled her eyes.

Flik laughed. "Well then," he replied, "we'll just have to make sure that Highland doesn't get the chance to march through Muse."

Viktor smiled. "Now that's the right attitude."

Food was delivered, and the two men lapsed into silence, working at their meals. In the midst of their eating, almost unnoticed, the door to the inn opened, and Riou and Nanami walked in. They looked tired, wet, and miserable. Flik, spotting them, motioned the two over towards the table. Dejectedly, they plopped down into the remaining two chairs.

Flik noted the absence of Jowy, who would normally be with the two of them. Finally, when neither Riou nor Nanami spoke, he decided to begin the conversation. "Are you two okay?" he asked, trying to sound concerned and not annoyed. "Leona told us about what's going on. We've been very worried." Viktor nodded, giving an encouraging smile.

Riou and Nanami exchanged a glance full of trepidation. Flik could feel a sinking sensation in his stomach. He was on the verge of speaking again when Nanami finally answered. "Y-Yeah, we're okay, but-" her voice quavered a little. "Jowy." Riou looked down at the floor.

Flik swallowed, searching for the right words. Viktor, on the other hand, didn't hesitate. "Yeah, he's not here," he said, stating the blatantly obvious. "What happened?" he continued, now voicing concern.

There was another long silence, where nobody was willing to meet anybody else's eyes. Again, it was Nanami who told the tale, in a quiet voice. "Well, we got to the Highland camp and Riou and Jowy went on alone. And then there was a lot of shouting from the camp and then it was quiet and then there was more yelling. Then Riou was running, being chased by Highland soldiers, and we went to help him. He drove them off with the Bright Shield, but Jowy…Jowy wasn't…" She trailed off.

"What?" Viktor yelled, causing everybody in hearing range to wince. Nanami, especially, shrank back in her chair. "So they've captured Jowy?" he asked, voice still booming.

Nanami began to blink rapidly, fighting off tears. "I…I don't know." She sniffed. "Riou said that…that Jowy was going to follow right after him."

Viktor pounded the table in frustration, causing Nanami to shriek a little. Riou stood up, placing a protective arm on her shoulders. Flik also stood up. "Enough, Viktor. You don't need to scare them. Let's just go and see Jess. We'll get the story from him."

Nanami, from behind the protection of Riou, spoke again. "But Jess wasn't there and we weren't allowed to go see Anabelle."

Viktor, standing up, smiled finally. "Oh, don't worry about that. I'll show you all a good trick. You'll really enjoy it." Flik chuckled; it was likely that Viktor was going to get the most enjoyment out of his trick.

The four of them left the inn, walking through the streets of Muse towards the Mayor's office. It was early evening, the westerly sun filling the clouds with red fire. It was no longer raining and the southwest wind made the air warm, almost muggy. Even at this hour, there were still plenty of people out on the streets, many going to and from various dinners and parties. City watchmen were busy setting up the street lamps.

Eventually they arrived. As before, no one barred the doors, and the four of them simply walked into the foyer. Flik glanced around the dimly lit interior; if anything, it seemed even more subdued than last time. He wondered if any of the important officials were in. That thought didn't seem to occur to Viktor, who purposefully strode towards the stairs. Flik, with a glance at Riou and Nanami, followed in his wake.

At the top of the stairs, Viktor paused, almost as if testing the air. "This way," he said, marching towards the same hallway that they'd gone down during the last visit. At the entrance to the hall, an official, appearing from somewhere, scurried over to intercept them. Flik studied him closely. It was the same bespectacled man who'd accosted them last time.

"What's your business here?" he demanded, imperiously. "Lady Anabelle is very busy with an important meeting and I don't think-"

Viktor, very gracefully in fact, reached out with one hand and shoved the official right out of his shoes, launching him ten feet down the hall. The official landed on his back with a startled "Unf!", scrambled around onto his hands and knees, and crawled to the first open door, darting inside.

Flik put his forehead in his hand. "Lovely trick," he muttered. "Next time we want to get in here, we'll probably have to fight our way in."

Viktor ignored him, instead turning to address Riou and Nanami. "And that," he lectured, "is the best way to deal with government workers. Let's go in."

Viktor turned and, without preamble, pulled the door open, walking in. Flik heard an indrawn gasp of surprise before he, too, entered, with Riou and Nanami coming in last. Looking around Viktor, Flik noted the four other people in the room. Anabelle stood behind her desk, with Fitcher sitting in a chair to the side. Hauser, having returned from the ruins of Toto, stood by the far wall, his hand only slightly strayed towards his sword belt. Jess was closest to Viktor, on the near side of the desk.

It was Jess who spoke first, pointing a finger at Viktor. "What is the meaning of this outrage?" Viktor glowered in response; Flik could feel his own rage simmering. Nanami and Riou remained partially hidden, clutching slightly at Flik's cape.

Anabelle, who was dressed as she had been for the earlier meeting, stood up and, projecting calmness, walked around her desk. She moved deliberately, head turning slightly to regard each new arrival in turn. She frowned slightly. "Viktor, what happened? Why are you so upset?"

In a swift outburst of anger, Viktor lunged at Jess, grabbing him by the shoulders, propelling him backwards, and finally pinning him against the desk. "You!" Viktor growled. "You sent Riou and Jowy off to spy on the Highland camp."

Fitcher, who'd fallen back out of his chair in the rush, cried out pitifully from the floor, "Wait a moment, everyone be calm, please!"

Jess, on the other hand, retained his cool. "Yes, I asked them to do it. Now get your hands off me." He shrugged slightly out of Viktor's hold, opening up some space by forcing Anabelle's desk backwards.

Flik noted the furrows that movement left in the rug, and then turned to speak to Anabelle. "I don't know the situation very well," he began, trying to match her calm. "But are you really in such bad shape that you had to use Riou and Jowy as spies?"

Anabelle glanced at her Vice-Mayor. "Jess, I'd like to hear your reason," she demanded, a slight chill in her voice.

Jess floundered momentarily under her gaze but then gathered himself. "We need information to win the upcoming battle. We have to use every tool at our disposal to get that information." He looked towards Riou. "Riou, how many provisions did they have?"

There was a tense silence as Riou seemed to deliberate. Finally, he stepped away from Flik's cape and said, "About two weeks worth."

Jess nodded. "Now we know. The mission was a success."

A spasm of rage shook Viktor, and he turned away from Jess. "Is that all you care about?"

Nanami, still clutching at Flik's cape, spoke up. "What about Jowy? He might be captured by Highland. Can't you save him?"

Anabelle took a few steps towards Nanami, bending her legs slightly to come down to her eye level. She smiled sadly and placed a hand on Nanami's shoulder. "I'm sorry," she answered gently. "What you three have done for us is invaluable. I wish we could go and save your friend, but we simply don't have the means to do it." Anabelle stood up once more. "Do you understand?"

Nanami didn't seem to. Rather, she cried out, "But, but…isn't there anything?"

Flik sighed, putting his arm around Nanami's shoulders. She hugged it, reflexively. "Riou…Nanami," he said. "Standing around here and talking about this isn't going to help us any. Let's go back, okay?"

Jess seemed to be going over his notes. "Two weeks means that they're planning a swift assault. That'll certainly help our strategy at the Hilltop conference." He smiled. "Good work, Riou."

Unfortunately for Jess, that remark set Viktor off again. He spun around, knocking the papers out of Jess' hands, scattering them across the room. Fitcher, having just regained his seat, now fell out of it again. "Please, no violence! No violence!" he begged, from his position on the floor. Viktor glanced over at Fitcher and took a step back.

But Jess had one more verbal barb to toss at Viktor. Scowling, he spat, "How dare you, mercenary! We have to do everything that we can to save Muse. Besides, it's your fault that Lady Anabelle suffers so."

Viktor froze, face contorted between rage and pain. Anabelle frowned, but her right hand strayed down towards her abdomen. Furiously, Flik flogged his mental faculties into action, blushing slightly when he finally figured it out. At his side, he heard Nanami's startled gasp. Hauser's brow furrowed, but then he nodded silently to himself. Fitcher looked as though he desperately wanted to disappear into a corner. Even Riou seemed to have figured it out. Everyone seemed to hesitate as to what to say next.

Finally, Anabelle spoke, filling the room with frost. "Stop that, Jess. Not another word!" Jess' triumphant smile flickered out, and he scooted around to the far side of the desk.

Viktor remained rooted in place, glancing between Anabelle and Jess, unspoken words dancing on his lips. Flik walked over and tapped Viktor's shoulder, catching his attention; it was time to end this discussion. "Enough, Viktor," Flik said, working to keep the resentment out of his voice. "It's obvious that the government of Muse isn't going to care much about the concerns of a bunch of mercenaries. It's time to go home."

Anabelle walked over and kissed Viktor lightly on the cheek. His hand came up to touch that spot on his face. She smiled and said, "Get some rest, Viktor. We'll talk about this later, alright?"

Viktor nodded, and permitted Flik to lead him from the room.

The trek back to the inn was made in complete silence and, to Flik, the dejection surrounding them seemed almost tangible. The fire in the clouds was fading with the setting sun. The two moons were risen. The blue moon was now full and the red moon was nearly so, filling the streets with a sort of pale lavender light. Leona was waiting for them at the inn and, catching their mood, said nothing as she escorted them to their table. Pilika, in her pink dress, quietly walked over and sat down in Nanami's lap. Flik regarded the little girl. In the fort, she'd been reasonably cheerful and talkative, but since they'd reunited, she seemed not to be speaking at all. He sighed; there was another concern to mull over.

Viktor finally spoke, looking down into his hands as he did so. "I'm sorry. We should've been there."

Nanami shook her head. "Jowy is…he's fine. I'm sure of it." She didn't sound sure of it.

Now Riou spoke. "It's Jowy; he'll be fine." He sounded more confident. Was he? Flik could not tell.

Nanami, though, was buoyed by the confidence in her brother's voice. "You're right," she replied, and then set Pilika down on to the floor. Nanami stood up. "I'm going to wait for Jowy out by the gate." Without waiting for anyone's approval, she bounded out the door. Pilika followed at her heels. Riou remained in his chair.

Flik glanced around the inn, looking for a familiar face. He spotted Rikimaru, working on what appeared to be a whole chicken, sitting at a nearby table. He motioned the swordsman over.

"What's up, oh mighty mercenary man?" he asked, carrying the bird under his arm.

Flik gestured towards the door. "Nanami and Pilika just went out to the gate to wait for Jowy. Keep an eye on them, discretely, and make sure they don't get into any trouble."

"Not a problem," Rikimaru replied. Then he looked down at Riou. "Cheer up, little master. Your friend will come back. Just you wait and see. Here, have something to eat." He deposited the chicken directly on to the table and then sauntered out after the girls.

Riou picked at the bird, pulling off little strips of flesh to eat. Viktor, never one to waste food, ripped off a drumstick and started chewing. In between bites, he said, "Listen to me, Riou. Everything's going to turn out fine. Things like this have a way of turning out, so you should just go upstairs and gets some rest. Okay?"

Riou didn't move and Viktor didn't push him. Minutes passed, and the two of them picked at the chicken in silence. A new arrival entered the inn; she was a female warrior with close-cropped brown hair, dressed in a purple coat and painfully heeled boots of iron. Finding an empty table, she pulled off her iron gauntlets and waved one of the serving girls over, ordering a glass of wine.

After a while, Riou seemed to doze off, with his head resting between his hands on the table and his eyes closed. Viktor had pulled the remains of the chicken closer to his side of the table and was now working the remaining meat off its bones. Flik, pondering the discussion back at the Mayor's office, finally chose to speak.

"So, Anabelle's pregnant," he began, casually. "Did you know?"

Viktor looked up from the meat. "Yeah, she told me that night while you were up at the fort."

Flik nodded. "How do you feel about that?"

Viktor made a sort of noncommittal grunt while he swallowed a piece of meat. "I don't know. I guess I haven't really thought about it."

"You're going to be a father," Flik continued, seriously. "You do understand that, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Viktor replied, looking a bit wary about this line of questioning. "What's the point?"

Flik paused, trying to hash out the best way to ask the next question. The pause was long enough that Viktor looked back up to see if the conversation was going to continue. Finally, Flik decided on the direct approach, as much as it discomforted him. "Do you love her, Viktor?"

"Of course I do," he sputtered, and then blushed, and then coughed, trying to cover his embarrassment. When he had regained his breath, he said, "You know I'd do anything for her. I'd give up my life for her, if necessary."

"This may sound presumptuous," Flik continued, "but I think you should marry her. It'd be good for your kid to have a father, don't you think?"

Viktor looked down at the bones of the chicken, a frown on his face. "No…I'd just get in the way. I'm no good at all this…fatherhood stuff. Besides, Anabelle will never marry me; I'd be too much of a political burden."

"I think you underestimate her," Flik answered quietly. "You should never pass up a chance to show a woman how much you love her. You think you have forever to speak the right words, but time is like a thief, snatching each chance out of your hands, and suddenly all you're left with is regrets." Flik blinked, much closer to crying than he had realized. For the next few moments, it was all he could do to struggle with the pain in his eyes. When he finally recovered, he whispered, "I'm sorry about that."

Viktor was looking at his very seriously, and the next words out of Viktor's mouth were among the most serious Flik had ever heard his friend speak. "I'll…give it some thought. Scares the daylights out of me, though. I'd rather ride into battle outnumbered a hundred to one than think about being a father." Seemingly startled at his own tone, Viktor stood up, pushing the chair back. "I'm off to bed," he said, trying to sound casual. "Tell me if anything comes of-" He gestured at Riou. Then he was gone.

Riou suddenly yawned, lifting his head out of his arms, and then glanced around, as if trying to get his bearings. "Still with us?" Flik smiled. "I think you should follow Viktor's example and get some rest. Waiting is hard work, you understand that?" Riou nodded, but still made no move to leave the table.

The two of them sat there, looking patiently towards the door to the inn, as even the last of the late drinkers finally got up to seek their beds. "I understand how you feel," Flik found himself saying. "It's better to remain optimistic; think that he's alive." He paused, and suddenly the ghost of his own voice echoed in his head; _Odessa isn't alive_. "Things…usually work out okay," he babbled. The voice taunted his words; _it didn't turn out okay_. "That's right," he answered his own words; though he wasn't sure which voice he was answering. "He'll come back," Flik ended, now speaking wholly to himself. The other voice whispered its retort; _Odessa didn't come back. She died; your fault, your fault, your-_

"I'm back!" a girl's voice spoke. "I'm back I said!" Startled out of his reverie, Flik looked up, expecting -in some mad fantasy- to see a woman with auburn hair and a red cape rushing towards him, her arms thrown wide to embrace-

But it was Nanami. She paused in the middle of the room and then, finally finding her brother, she rushed towards the table. "Jowy's back, I mean. He's here; he's coming." She reached the table and pulled Riou out of his chair, hugging him, and letting happy tears stream down her cheeks.

Cautiously, Flik stood up. "Let's not get so excited," he said. "People are trying to sleep."

Nanami released her brother, just as Jowy and Pilika walked through the inn door. The little girl had a death grip around his leg and waist, making it difficult for him to walk. He struggled to the center of the room and finally announced, a little sheepishly, "I'm back, Riou, just like I promised."

Riou nodded and then, in a greater display of emotion than Flik had ever seen out of the young man, walked towards his friend and embraced him. "Welcome home," he said simply, after stepping back.

"Thank you," Jowy answered. "Thanks…Riou."

"I told you," Flik said, though mostly to himself. "I knew it would turn out okay." He turned to wipe a tear, and found that his cheeks were already moist.


	14. Chapter 14 Worth of an Alliance

**Chapter 14 – Worth of an Alliance**

_In Solis 460, Windsdei, the 30th of Avrai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_Muse City is buzzing in anticipation of the Hilltop Conference tomorrow. People have literally come to blows over the chance to get a glimpse of the various delegations. Yesterday's arrival of the Tinto delegation marks the last. They are all here; now the Jowston Alliance can settle down to the business of expelling Luca Blight from its territory. And then this war will be over, not a moment too soon._

_Viktor has taken the kids out to see more of the sights, as he's done every day for the past six. They all seem to be recovering nicely from their harrowing experience during spying mission and its aftermath. Well, I suppose they do deserve a chance to have fun; they've already been through more hardship than most. The only problem with that is Viktor's left the work of seeing to the men up to me. I only hope that I can get back from my duties in time for the Conference._

Flik closed the diary. If he had any hope of meeting that goal, he'd have to get things rolling immediately. He clipped tight the clasp on his blue cape and tucked the diary under his right arm. Then, closing the door to his room behind him, he walked downstairs to the bar.

Leona was purposefully striding over to him even before he'd reached the bottom of the stairs. "That man has got to go." She gestured towards Zamza, who was busily trying to chat up one of the serving girls. The girl ignored him. "He doesn't help at all, he's annoying, and no one will share a room with him." One of the bouncers had stepped between him and the waitress, and Zamza was just beginning to raise his voice, exclaiming about the "rudeness of some people."

Flik rolled his eyes. "I'm on it."

He strode towards Zamza swiftly, watching as the irate mage escalated from shouting to jabbing at the bouncer with his finger. The bouncer's hands strayed down towards his cudgel, but then he noted Flik, and backed down. Zamza didn't notice anything until Flik grabbed him by the shoulder. He glanced sharply in Flik's direction, but then moderated his tone. "Ah, now here's a good chap. Can you believe this ruffian?" Zamza continued, pointing at the bouncer. "He's ruined a perfectly good conversation I was trying to have with that nice young lady. I tell you, some people are so insufferably rude. The worst part is that they don't even realize it. Let me tell you, have you ever been in a conversation with the sort of boor who won't let you get a word in edgewise? All you can do is just stand there and nod and hope he gets the hint."

Flik nodded. Then, catching Zamza taking a breath, he said, as pleasantly as he could fake it, "I was thinking about your accommodations. Especially at how…limited they are."

"Yes, yes, my rooms are so very meager." He frowned, deeply, though it seemed very theatrical to Flik's eyes. "Not at all like the place you gave me back at the fort. That was a nasty piece of business, it being burned down and all. I bore it all with my usual grace, of course, and helped Master Riou get to Muse."

"Well," Flik interjected, "if you'll follow me, I believe I can get you some rooms more to your liking." Without waiting for Zamza's response, he turned and walked towards the doors.

Naturally enough, Zamza followed, babbling conversationally all the way. "Those rooms in the fort were great; it's just too bad that I never got a chance to accessorize them properly. Hey, do you think we could stop by one of those carpenters on the way to these new rooms? One of the upscale ones, of course."

Flik ignored him as he stepped outside, adjusting to the light and temperature of the morning. The weather had not yet warmed up to the degree that he considered normal for mid-spring in Toran, though he'd heard some of the locals complaining about the early heat. He shrugged; at least he wasn't waking up to his own misting breath most mornings.

A curious collection of men and carts waited outside the inn. Many of the men were new recruits, about a hundred, formed by yelling sergeants into a rough approximation of a marching column. The recruits were a motley bunch, some obviously nervous, a few feigning indifference, and others puffed up on self-importance. The ten carts, aside from Tsai's cart of Fire Spears, were full of various supplies: foodstuffs, armor and weapons, saddles for horses, and even the wood needed to expand the number of beds in the fort.

Barbara, naturally enough, was overseeing the supplies. Noting Flik's arrival, she turned and said, "Everything's loaded up. This will hold you for at least a week, unless you silly men decided to stuff your ears with the food."

Flik chuckled; it was likely that Barbara had seen to it that there was enough food even if the men decided to stuff their ears with it. "What about you?" Flik asked. "When are you coming up to the fort?"

"When you make it more livable than the inn," she answered. "I don't mind roughing it, but not when I know I can get hot baths here."

There wasn't much to say to that; after all, Flik liked hot baths, too. He looked aside, seeing the senior sergeant Tarrance riding forward, leading Flik's horse. Handing the reins to Flik, he said, "There are two people who wish to speak to you, sir. They are Master Huan and young Tuta. They're just beyond the end of the inn, sir." He paused to frown disapprovingly at the assembled recruits. "We're as ready to move out as we'll ever be."

Flik nodded. "Right after I see what the good doctor wants." Leading his horse, he walked over to where the doctor and his apprentice waited. They were just beyond the lead cart. Tuta, standing next to his bag of medical tools and another bag that Flik hadn't seen before, was gazing at the men with wonder and what seemed to be a touch of nervousness. Surprisingly, his master, Huan, also seemed nervous, shifting his hands over his orange dress gown and red tunic, and then suddenly adjusting the glasses on his face.

The doctor bowed as Flik approached. "Good morning, commander," Huan said, shifting his sandaled feet slightly. "I'm sorry to take up your time, but I've come to beg a favor." Flik's eyebrows shot up, but before he could speak, the doctor continued. "Actually, it's a favor for my apprentice, so perhaps he should ask."

Tuta took a moment to gather himself, stepped slightly forward, and excitedly spoke, "I'd like to…um…join your mercenaries. As their doctor, of course. Riou came around the other day and I asked him and he said I could join, but my master thought I should get your permission, too." Huan put a reassuring hand on Tuta's shoulder when his apprentice stopped.

Flik looked back at the doctor. "Are you okay with this? I mean, this is war, he's likely to see some pretty ghastly stuff."

Huan smiled serenely, which, with his long hair, made him look much younger than he actually was. "There is only so much that Tuta can learn by studying pictures in books, even under my instruction. He must practice his craft to improve and to do that, he will have to see many ghastly things." He squeezed Tuta's shoulder and the boy looked up at his master's face, smiling. Huan met his apprentice's gaze. "You'll do well, Tuta. All you lack is experience." Then he turned back to Flik, pushing Tuta gently out in front. "I leave him in your care, Flik." Huan nodded and swiftly departed, leaving Flik standing in front of Tuta, feeling very much like he'd been blind-sided by a carriage.

Tuta tugged at Flik's arm. "You'll really let me set up a ward in the fort?" he asked, still nervous.

Flik was still staring after the doctor. "Yeah, that's no problem."

Tuta's manner immediately changed, all hesitation gone from his voice. "I'll need about five or six orderlies from your men, then. They need to be reasonably intelligent and good with their hands; I'll let you pick the men. Also, I'll need at least twenty beds, and more like fifty if you can spare them."

Flik blinked. "What?"

"Then I'll need to do an inventory on all the…uh…alcohol. I'll need something to knock my surgery patients out with."

Right around the word "surgery" Flik finally realized that Tuta was serious about going through with this. He reached down, grabbed the larger of Tuta's two bags, and started towards one of the carts. Tuta obligingly followed, carrying the other, and continuing to list off things that he needed. "And a cabinet, of course. Probably several, actually. Gauze, too, lots and lots of gauze."

Flik arrived at the closest cart, where Hanna sat in the driver's position. He passed Tuta's bag up and then hoisted the kid into position. "Look after him; he's going to be the fort's doctor."

Hanna glanced bemusedly at Tuta, who sat looking rather awestruck by the female warrior from the Nameless Lands. Then she smiled. "I shall look after this son you have given me." Flik nearly fainted at that announcement, catching himself with one hand on the side of the cart. Hanna chuckled at his antics. "There is no need to worry, commander," she continued, cheerfully. "This usage of 'son' comes from my homeland, where it refers to anyone smaller than the speaker."

Flik fought off his blushing. He also didn't wait around to find out if the term "son" covered him, as well. There being no further delays, he got the column of carts and men underway, leading them through the crowded city streets. Like last time, the throngs of people paid his men little heed, making his progress difficult to say the least. To pass the time, he watched other groups of people struggling to get to their destinations. On one street, he saw a group of White Knights, from Matilda, seemingly unsure of how to get the crowd to make way. Over on another street corner, he saw a pair of Duck Clan merchants, from the Grasslands, arguing over whether to go right or left. Their Lizard guards lounged uncomfortably on the wall of a residence, drawing stares even from the cosmopolitan people of Muse.

Eventually, they made their way up the causeway to the monument and the conference hall. Here Flik let the men take a break, some of them sitting down in the shade to find some respite from the sun. Flik smiled, the southwest breeze and spring warmth suited him just fine, though there were clouds building up out of the south. The Blue Moon -half-full, waning, and only a pale wisp in the daylight- was just rising out of the east. The Scarlet Moon would follow along later.

"Commander, sir, I'd like a word with you."

Flik turned as a woman with short blond hair, a purple coat, and high-heeled iron boots approached. This was Anita, who since her arrival about seven days ago, had done nothing but sit at her one table, yell at anyone who came close, and occasionally walk over to the bar to rail at Leona for cutting her off from the drinks. Somehow, Riou had recruited her into the force. Flik still didn't know how this had been accomplished. Leona would only say that it had involved some antitoxin and a bowl of sake. Viktor had commented, "The kid's got scary good luck with the ladies. I'm a little envious."

"Yes?" Flik answered, shaking out of his reverie.

Anita didn't smile, but continued speaking much as if she were going down a checklist. "You were in the Liberation Army, during the war, right?"

"Yes."

"Valeria, now one of the Six Great Generals of the Republic, was also in the Liberation Army, yes?" Anita's tone suggested that she knew the answer already.

"Yes." Flik tried to keep his impatience from showing on his face. "Your point?"

Now Anita's eyes seemed to blaze with eagerness. "Tell me about her time in the war. How was her technique? How well did she do?"

Flik felt compelled to turn away from her gaze. "She was an excellent swordswoman, and she had a rune that helped her focus her attacks. She was instrumental at Pannu Yakuta and in many other battles. Whether on attack or defense, she always seemed to be at the fiercest fighting."

He sensed, rather than saw, Anita's nod. "Of course, she could hardly deserve to be called my rival if she was not the best." There was a pause, and then she asked, "Who is more beautiful, her or me?"

Suddenly he felt every little bead of sweat forming on his forehead. "I'm," he had to stop to take in a breath, or maybe release one. "I'm not really sure."

Anita had stepped around to his other side, back into view. She wasn't smiling. "Oh come on, it's not a difficult question. Who's more beautiful?"

Flik worked on finding a suitable way to dodge the question. "I really couldn't say; I mean, she's not here for me to compare."

If anything, Anita's frown deepened. "What kind of man are you? Didn't you even look at the most beautiful woman in the Liberation Army?"

He bit down hard on the harsh response forming in his mouth, swallowing it for good measure. Anita continued to stare directly at him. Finally, he answered, curtly, "We didn't spend much of our free time together. I certainly didn't seek her out for companionship. I had other things on my mind at the time."

She huffed angrily into his face. "Well, you don't have to get all bent out of shape about it. All I asked was a simple question. Forget about it, if it upsets you so much. I'll just ask the big guy. He'll probably have an opinion." With that, she stalked off, her iron heels clicking off the white bricks of the road.

They arrived at the Dawn Fort just after the end of dusk. The supplies were unloaded and the new recruits were quickly hustled off to their new living quarters. Tuta quickly appropriated an unused room to serve as his ward. Anita sniffed disdainfully at the fort and wandered off to find a secluded room, saying she might consent to training some of the men in swordplay sometime in the morning. Zamza, exclaiming that the new rooms were "just perfect" dashed off to begin jotting down a list of possible improvements. Hanna seemed to have disappeared after the unloading.

Flik took in a hasty meal of beef and vegetable soup, more vegetable than meat, and more broth than anything. There were some hard rye rolls to sop up the broth. Not for the first time, Flik wondered about hiring on a professional chef to see to the cooking.

After dinner, Flik sat down to a meeting with the senior sergeants. Karl, a senior sergeant with the infantry, spoke first. "Sir, with this latest batch of recruits in, we now approach the fighting strength we had in East Muse. Unfortunately," he frowned, "it will be some time before we approach our old combat effectiveness. Most of these recruits would run from their own shadows. They seem to think this'll be easy money, but we'll soon put paid to that notion." There were several snorts and guffaws in response to Karl's statement.

"What about enemy movements?" Flik asked. "Rossgard, do you have any news?"

"Almost everything my men hear is rumors, sir. Some of the Matilda Knights seemed sure that Highland would come after them. One of the border guards swore that he saw Luca Blight at the north border of Muse, riding down the Highland side of the checkpoint." Rossgard frowned at that last bit of news. "I don't know whether to believe him or not, but it's not good news if he's there."

"No," Flik agreed, "it's not good news. And we have to work under the assumption that Luca Blight really is there. We all know that they're planning a quick campaign" -he still wished that Riou and Jowy had not been caught up in the spying mission- "so we'll need to be very alert once he makes his move."

The meeting moved on to other subjects, mostly a discussion about the soundness of the fort walls. Flik mentioned Tuta, noting that he would be the mercenaries' resident doctor. The sergeants took the news with approval; they knew the young man well. The news that Anita was to be chief blade instructor to Riou's unit they took with measured silence; they'd wait and see how that turned out. The meeting wound down, and Flik went to bed, content that he'd managed to arrange everything in time for the conference.

The fort woke early, and Flik with it. Breakfast was the remains of last night's dinner, with some of the winter apples that had been brought up the day before. Flik found it singularly unappetizing, and hurried through it. Outside, with the rising sun burning off the morning mist, he found Hanna organizing the empty wagons for a return trip. Rossgard was busy organizing the squad of riders who'd serve as Flik's escort.

"Morning, sir," he greeted, when Flik walked over. "Hopefully, things will go well at the conference and we won't have to worry so much about the Highlanders."

Flik nodded, mounting his horse. "Indeed. Today we see the worth of an alliance."

Then, checking that the men were ready to go, Flik led them out past Hanna and the carts, moving off at a trot into the face of the rising sun. By tradition, the conference would begin at the moment of exact noon, and he did not want to miss it if at all possible. As they rode west, Flik could see the other forts of the outer defenses, appearing as the mist gave way. The road was empty of other travelers, though they did startle a family of white-tailed deer that had been grazing by the side. Hours passed, the sun rose higher in the sky, and finally Muse and the conference hall were visible. Drawing nearer, Flik could see a cordon of city patrolmen guarding the entrance from the east. There was quite a crowd of dignitaries and spectators around the causeway and western approaches.

Reaching the cordon, Flik halted the patrol and dismounted. One of the watchmen approached and asked, "Your business, mister?"

Pulling out Lady Anabelle's orders, Flik tried a bluff. "I've got important information for the mayor. I need to get through." The watchman frowned, at least, until Flik added a bag of potch to the bluff. Then he nodded.

"You can go through. Your men will have to wait here."

After ordering the men back to the fort, Flik passed through the cordon. Inside, there was much more of a carnival atmosphere, with merchants having set up stalls on nearly every available patch of grass, and members of each delegation's entourage milling about. Eschewing the delegate's entrance, Flik worked his way towards the visitor's entrance. Here the normal citizens thronged, not really expecting to get in, but waiting to be the first to hear whatever decisions were made. However, one group of people did seem to be trying to negotiate with the woman who blocked the portal in.

"Hey, don't you recognize my face?" a big, booming voice shouted. "My face is all the proof I need." The owner of such "proof" was none other than Viktor, with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami in tow.

The woman was unimpressed. "I'm sorry, but you're not on the list of dignitaries, so I can't let you in."

This news seemed to distress Viktor. "What?" He goggled. "Anabelle would never forget about me. This must be Jess' fault. Why, the next time I see him I'll pound his scrawny little-"

At this point, Flik intervened, walking towards Viktor. "I hope you're not thinking of using your "good trick" again." He laughed as Viktor did a double take in the direction of his voice.

Then Viktor laughed as well. "Glad you could make it, Flik. I thought you were going to miss out on all the festivities. Now if only we could get through this official."

"Oh!" The woman's eyes grew wide at the sight of Flik coming up to stand next to Viktor. "Are you really Sir Flik? The one they call 'Flik of the Blue Lightning'?"

Flik blushed; it was obvious that silly nickname was stuck on him. "Uh…yes," he answered.

The woman shrieked in pleasure and rushed forward to grab Flik's hand. "Oh I can't believe it! I'm standing next to the gorgeous Flik of the Blue Lightning! This is the very best day of my whole entire life!"

Viktor furrowed his brow in consternation. "They don't recognize my face in my home country, but somehow they know yours?" he asked.

Flik was too busy fending off his exuberant fan to try and respond to Viktor. Instead, he asked, "Could we…uh…get in there, please?"

She seemed to be trying to melt into his arms. "Anything for my precious Blue Lightning," she cooed.

"Precious?" Viktor chuckled.

"I'll just-" Flik finally managed to disengage from her and stepped past. "Come on, let's go before this whole thing's over." He turned and dashed into the building.

From behind, he heard the woman say. "I'll be waiting right here for you, after the conference ends. We can see some more of each other, right?"

Risking a quick glance back, he saw her leaning against the frame of the entrance, fanning herself with one hand. Finally Flik rounded the corner and was safe.

Viktor and the others caught up with him there, as he paused to collect his wits. They seemed quite amused by his discomfiture. "Enough!" Flik said, when their collective chuckles threatened to burst into full-throated laughter. "Let's just find some seats."

Walking down the windowed corridor, he found that it very quickly opened into the main conference room. It was rectangular in shape, with a second level viewing gallery that was packed with people. A large oaken conference table dominated the lower level, with flags representing the six city-states hung above the three chairs on each side. A seventh chair stood at the head of the table, at the far wall of the room.

A trumpet fanfare suddenly startled Flik, snapping him out of looking around the room. "Mayor of Muse City, Lady Anabelle," a female herald announced. There was much shuffling in the gallery as people turned to watch the mayor arrive. She was dressed simply in her working clothes, with Jess trailing in behind her. She glanced at Viktor for one moment, smiled slightly, and then made her way to the head of the table. Jess' face betrayed nothing.

Viktor gestured towards a series of smaller tables at the closer wall. Many of them already had seated dignitaries, but one in the back appeared to be empty. "That's where we'll do our sightseeing."

Viktor led the way, with Flik and the others following. He had not yet proceeded very far when a gruff voice rumbled, "Out of the way, girl." Flik turned around just in time to see Nanami stumble backwards out of the way of the speaker. She landed with a squeak on the tiled floor. The speaker, who swept past without a look towards Nanami, was a heavy-set older knight. He was one of the White Knights of Matilda. Though his hair and beard were completely gray, he moved with a dangerous determination. He was dressed for battle, mail gloves visible out past the sleeves of his white tunic and gray mantle. The sword on his hip shifted with his stride.

Two younger knights followed at his heels, representatives of the Red and Blue Knights. The Red Knight, with blond hair, knelt down to see to Nanami, his purple half-cape fluttering in the air. Nanami was not happy. "Creep!" she shouted. "Are you trying to kill somebody?" The White Knight, now halfway across the room, didn't hear the remark, or perhaps, affected to not hear the remark.

"Pardon us, gentle lady," the Red Knight said, drawing Nanami's attention. "I believe he was but overeager. Might we beg your forgiveness?"

Riou took a step back towards his sister; Flik put out his hand to catch his shoulder. Nanami, still sitting on the floor, blushed and ran a hand through her hair. "No," she answered, flustered. "I mean, yes." She smiled wonderingly up at the Red Knight.

His comrade, a black haired man in a blue and black surcoat, spoke, "What are you doing, Camus?" He shifted tensely, glancing towards Viktor and Flik, and then back at the Red Knight.

Camus didn't seem put off by the tone. "I am merely fulfilling the requirements of chivalry, Miklotov. It is a knight's duty to be polite and courteous to a lady."

The lady in question continued to babble from the floor. "Ah-I…it's…I'm okay."

Camus helped her to her feet, smiling all the while. "It gladdens my heart to hear that. But now, I hope that you will excuse my departure."

Miklotov nodded. "Hurry up; it's also a knight's duty to attend his lord- in a timely manner." The two knights turned to follow their commander, leaving Nanami staring off after them.

"Did you hear?" she exclaimed breathlessly. "Riou, Jowy, he called me a lady!"

"So what?" Viktor said. "He's a knight; he'll call any woman "lady", even an old crone."

Nanami stuck out her tongue.

Flik, seeing that everything had turned out well, and noting the next group of dignitaries eyeing the empty table in the back, said, "Come on, let's take our seats."

As they shuffled into place, the herald continued announcing.

"Knight-Commander of the Matilda Knights and Captain of the White Knights, Lord Gorudo."

"Representative General of Two River City, Lord Makai."

"Acting Mayor of Greenhill City, Lady Teresa."

"Mayor of Tinto City, Lord Gustav."

"Mayor of South Window City, Lord Granmeyer."

"Commander of the Muse City Forces, Lord Hauser."

By this time, all of the chairs around the table were filled, and the two entrances to the room had been sealed off by guards. With the sound of gears grinding, a narrow strip in the roof was opened, revealing a shaft of light which fell almost on the center of the table. Imperceptibly, the light crawled towards the exact center, and a faceted diamond that had been set into that exact location. Suddenly, the light flared, reaching the center, refracted by the diamond and carried out to mirrors. For a moment, dazzling color filled the whole hall. In the next moment, it was gone. Silence had descended.

Solemnly, Anabelle stood, and the whole assembly rose with her. Flik, at the back of the room, shifted to try and keep her in view. Then she spoke, loud and clear, voice pitched slightly up to carry:

"By the grace and dominion of the Twenty-Seven True Runes, under the Covenant of Jowstone, established in Solis three-fourteen, I hereby call to order this, the one hundred and forty-seventh sitting of the Jowston Alliance."


	15. Chapter 15 Hollow Words

**Chapter 15 – Hollow Words**

There was another shuffling as people took their seats. Jess, from behind Anabelle, stepped forward and said, "Would that this sitting of the Alliance occurred under more peaceful circumstances, but it does not. As we speak, the Highland Army is massing at our northern border. Our intelligence suggests that they have two weeks provisions with them. They will attack soon and swiftly."

This news sparked soft murmuring from the gallery. Lord Makai, a blond man wearing a white dress gown with brown trim, spoke, "Technically, Highland is still in compliance with the cease-fire, right? Shouldn't negotiations be our first option?" Flik thought his tone seemed rather diffident.

Jess answered, "They've already invaded the province of East Muse. Despite the best efforts of our forces, they prevailed, and have razed all the villages in the province."

Viktor whispered, "Now he praises our efforts."

Flik nodded, trying to listen to Gorudo's response. "Highland's envoy in Rockaxe tells me that it was Muse who was the aggressor, massacring the Unicorn Brigade the night after the cease-fire was signed. As for this 'invasion', Highland tells me that it's just the work of bandits. We all know how lax Muse's security is in that region, depending on the arms of mercenaries instead of real soldiers."

Viktor growled, gripping the edge of their table with both hands.

Now another man was speaking. This was Granmeyer who, like Gorudo, had gone gray. He did not have the mien of a warrior, but rather seemed more diplomatic. His light blue half-cape shifted slightly as he leaned forward. "Do you really believe that respected and experienced commanders like Viktor of North Window or Flik of the Blue Lightning could be put to rout by a bunch of bandits?"

Gorudo was not impressed by this response. "Has anyone actually seen Highland soldiers in East Muse? Let the truth be known to this audience; Muse's own general Hauser never even came into contact with the Highland Army."

There was more murmuring from the gallery at this statement. Viktor, heatedly, began to rise, until Flik caught his arm. "It's not our place to speak," he whispered. "You'll just have to let Anabelle and Hauser argue for themselves."

Hauser was already doing so. "I have the testimony of thousands of witnesses," he answered, evenly. "If needed, some of them can even be called before this Alliance to speak for themselves."

Gorudo frowned, but stood down, making way for a new speaker. This was a man still in his prime, with a square face framed by brown hair and a thin beard. His nose looked like it had been broken at least once. The speaker was Gustav, representing Tinto and its miners. Casually, he tossed his blue overcoat back onto his chair, showing off his powerful arms to the audience. Then he spoke, "All of this skirmishing only distracts us from the real threats of those schemers in Vinay del Zexay and the barbarians of the Grasslands. Muse and Highland have squabbled over the border for generations. Let us just offer Highland what they want and put an end to it."

He was met by a hail of boos from some of the people in the gallery and many at the tables around Viktor and Flik. Jess shot Gustav a dark look, but both Gorudo and Makai were nodding agreement. However, none of these men spoke next, but instead the other woman at the table. She was blond, her long hair hanging down her back, and she was wearing a blue blouse and long dark green skirt. This was Teresa Wisemail, from Greenhill, who said, "We all know of Tinto's insatiable desire for lands in the west. My father was drawn in by your plots. But I digress; the reason for concern is that Prince Luca Blight now commands the Highland armies. Even mighty Harmonia views him with concern. We should be doubly afraid."

Gorudo chuckled spitefully. "How comes it that this unbroken dog is permitted to bark at our table? Let her father speak, if he is still able. Better yet, let Greenhill pay its arrears in rice to this alliance. Three years is enough grace for spindle-armed scholars and nearsighted bookworms." He banged his mailed fist down on the table. "My knights cannot feed themselves and defend Jowston as well." Gustav nodded his agreement.

Teresa convulsed angrily, glanced sharply towards Gorudo, and then shouted, "How dare this Alliance let this buffoon speak to me like that? I call for a motion to expel the delegate from Matilda-"

Her motion was hooted down from the gallery, most of the noise coming from the Tinto delegation. Teresa scowled at each representative at the table, but no one stood to second her.

Gorudo took control of the table again. "Let Muse handle its own problems. The blood and steel of Matilda shall not be expended in support of the failed policies of that halfwit Darrel and his little nit."

More boos cascaded down from the gallery, but they were being matched by cheers, as well. When they subsided, Makai spoke. "The people of Two River also tire of unending battles, we-"

Anabelle stood up, silencing Makai with a harsh look. "Do you foresee an end to the battles if we let that wolf, Luca Blight, loose on our lands? How do you propose to defend yourselves if he tears out the throat of this Alliance with his next move? In the name of our mutual oath, I command you to provide troops to the defense of Muse, capital city of the Jowston Alliance."

There was a long silence. Flik could feel the tension building. He knew that Anabelle was trying to force their hands by invoking their oaths, but he also knew that it would remind the other delegates of her desperation.

Finally there was a response. It was harsh, slow laughter from the person of Gustav, as he stood up. "Hollow words make for hollow threats, Anabelle. Why should Tinto starve for the sake of continuing Muse's pointless aggression with Highland?

This was followed by a muted roar from part of the gallery. In his peripheral vision, Flik noted the Tinto delegation forming up in one portion of the gallery. Meanwhile, Granmeyer had stood to speak through the din. "This is an order in the name of the Alliance. Do you dare slander those ancient oaths?"

Gustav sneered in Granmeyer's general direction. "Fine words from the one who ran in the face of the Scarlet Moon's armies. If you'd held your guts in check, we'd still be in possession of Senan today."

Granmeyer's response was drowned in the sea of shouting that surged out of the gallery. Anabelle stood up and signaled Hauser. He gave a signal to the soldiers guarding the exits. Immediately, more Muse soldiers spilled into the gallery, and in a few moments, a rough sort of order had been imposed above. The delegates at the table, especially Gustav, did not look pleased. In the interim, another soldier had appeared at the entrance and hurriedly jogged towards Jess. This soldier, more than anything else, was what Flik watched. He whispered something into Jess' ear, something that made him pale and then frown. Both Anabelle and Gorudo also seemed to notice, Anabelle standing up and gaveling everything into silence.

Then Jess delivered his news. "The Highland Army has made its move. They've slaughtered the border guards and are advancing on Muse as we speak, perhaps twenty thousand strong."

Shouting broke out in the gallery again, this time sounding more like panic than anger. Granmeyer collapsed back into his chair, placing a hand over his heart. Gorudo only nodded to himself, and then motioned his subordinate knights forward.

Anabelle slammed her gavel down again, achieving a lessening of the noise. "Under my authority as Mayor of Muse, I'm declaring martial law," she shouted. "Hauser, clear that gallery; the rest of this sitting is now closed to the public. But know this: all of you, I'm ordering you to gather your forces and come to my aid."

Viktor stood up. "I'd say that this party's just about done. Follow me." They did. Viktor led, muscling his way through the crowd with a few well placed jabs of his huge arms. Flik shepherded the three children along in Viktor's wake. The corridor out from the conference room was packed with soldiers trying to force their way in and people trying to leave.

Outside, the crowds still thronged, but the mood seemed much more panicky. People milled about, casting wary glances in the direction of Muse soldiers and off to the northeast, presumably towards the Highland menace. The Muse soldiers, for their part, were busy trying to chivvy the gawkers away. As Flik, Viktor, and the three children paused to catch their breaths, Viktor said, "So, pretty interesting, right?"

Nanami chewed on her lower lip a little. "You think so? All I saw was a bunch of people arguing at each other. Do you think anything will get done?" Jowy nodded his agreement with Nanami. Riou just closed his eyes.

Viktor shrugged. "Most of that was for show. They've all got people back at home that they have to keep happy. Part of that means posturing to show that they're not giving something up for nothing."

Nanami frowned. "But why should they be worried about the cost of defending each other? Can't they see what will happen if they don't?"

Viktor only shrugged again. "People are like that sometimes. The same man who'd gladly lay down his life to defend his wife and children won't raise a finger to defend the wives and children of complete strangers." He puffed out a breath. "Man, I'm beat just from sitting in there. How about we get some cold drinks at Leona's? He looked at the kids. "Ah, some cold juice for them, I suppose."

The city seemed much quieter than normal as Flik and the others walked through it towards the inn. Squads of watchmen were fanning out, taking up positions at street corners, looking both excitable and nervous as they scanned the roads. Closer to the inn and the gates was a line of people waiting to leave. Most of these were foreign merchants, their wares already packed up in wagons and carts or simply on various pack animals. The more ornate carriages in the line suggested that some of the upper class were also making their escape. All around the carts and carriages, huddled up against buildings or wandering listlessly, were poorer refugees, those that had escaped earlier battles in East Muse. They did not seem to be going anywhere quickly.

Walking back into the inn, Flik noticed how quiet it seemed. The common room was empty except for a few maids, Leona, and -now fully recovered- Apple. Apple and Leona had been talking but turned to greet Viktor and Flik as they arrived.

"I've heard the news," Apple said gravely. "You'll probably be receiving orders shortly."

Viktor scratched his head. "You think? Looks to me like we'll be sitting on the defensive."

Apple laughed. "Not a chance. If Anabelle does nothing, then the Highland Army will arrive before any of the reinforcements from the other City-States can get here. You can bet that she won't want to try the issue with just Muse City forces. Thus, she'll ask for a spoiling action, and she'll call on her most trusted commander -you- to deliver it."

"You got this all figured out, don't you," Viktor responded. "You know when she's likely to get here?"

Flik suddenly heard the sound of a carriage clattering to a halt outside the inn. Apple answered, "Oh, I'd say right about-"

Her sentence was cut off as the front doors to the inn burst open and Anabelle determinedly strode inside. Muse soldiers followed her, positioned themselves smartly around the room, and hustled the maids out. Last to enter, with much less fanfare, was one of the Blue Knights of Matilda. He had been with Gorudo earlier, but Flik couldn't remember what his name was.

Chuckling, Viktor said, "Well, this is a surprise. But hey, I was there at the meeting. That was rough, but you did well."

For a brief moment, Anabelle smiled, but then she set her face again. "It was my job, that's all. For all that shouting in public, nobody wants to see Highland win either." The Blue Knight looked aside, coloring slightly in embarrassment.

"So, why are you here?" Viktor continued. "I don't think it's just to make small talk with me."

"No, I didn't. Viktor, I need you to slow down the Highland Army, at least until the other State forces arrive. I'd prefer not to have to test the resolve of my commanders in a battle at the Ring Forts. If you could bloody Highland sufficiently, you might be able to halt their advance and buy enough time for the full forces of Jowston to assemble."

"It could be done," Apple mused. "If we can lure their scouts into some sort of ambush, we might just hold them up along enough."

Viktor glanced between Apple and Anabelle. "You think we can really stand against the whole Highland Army?" he asked the space between the two of them.

"Not the whole army," Anabelle answered. "Your strategist is correct, defeating the lead units under Solon Jhee should be enough. Also, I've arranged for some additions to your units. Teresa has left the Greenhill Rangers under Hauser's command, and I've transferred them to your command, Flik. Also, I've asked Hauser to release ten companies of infantry to support you. Finally," she motioned towards the Blue Knight behind her, "Gorudo has dispatched Miklotov to help us."

Miklotov stepped forward, bowing slightly. "Part of my unit, about two thousand cavalry, is stationed at the Matilda-Muse border. I've already sent a messenger to get them moving. They should arrive from the northwest in two days."

Flik did some quick arithmetic in his head. The additions brought their force up to almost forty-five hundred men, but maintaining control over the disparate parts would be problematic. Turning to Anabelle, he said, "If all we've got to do is slow them down, then I think we can do it."

Anabelle smiled again. "Thanks, handsome."

He immediately looked away, feeling the blush rising in his cheeks. Viktor confidently spoke, "That's what you're paying us for, right? Besides, I could never refuse a pretty face like yours."

There was a moment of silence, which Jowy, forgotten until now, rushed to fill. "Umm…you're going to let us fight with you, right?"

"Jowy, Riou." Anabelle frowned. "It was wrong of me to permit you to get involved in this whole mess. Forgive me. You don't need to do any more than you already have. I don't want you mixed up in this if it gets ugly."

Jowy was not to be deterred. Forcefully, he answered, "We've already fought once. We want to fight. We want to help you slow down the Highland Army. Isn't that right Riou?"

For a moment, Flik felt an incredible sense of déjà vu, as it seemed to him that the hands of fate suddenly stood still. Then the moment passed, as Riou answered, "Of course." Flik glanced around the room, wondering if anyone else had felt that.

Anabelle looked questioningly towards Viktor. "They've seen battle, then?" Viktor nodded his response, and Anabelle looked back towards Riou, Jowy, and Nanami. "The three of you, don't die, please. When this is over, come and visit me. I want to talk to you about Master Genkaku." She turned aside, a distant look in her eyes.

Nanami smiled, answering gleefully, "Okay…yes, yes!"

Anabelle matched Nanami's smile and then looked once more at Viktor. "I've got to get back. Those scoundrels in the Senate might think I've run off if I disappear for too long." Suddenly, her cheerfulness departed, a melancholy settling in. "Viktor, do a good job for us. So much depends on the actions of a few men." Viktor seemed about to step to her, to try and hug her, but with a look she stopped him. "I know you'll try your best."

Viktor laughed. "Yeah, I can't help it, that's all I know how to do." Anabelle waved, and then was gone, her escort following quickly.

With a clap of her hands, Apple started speaking. "You two," she commanded, pointing to Viktor and Flik, "get going. I want to get our forces moving out of the Dawn Fort tomorrow morning."

Viktor groused, "Who put her in charge?"

"You should listen to your strategist," Apple commented. Then, looking at Miklotov, she said, "You, Mister Blue Knight-"

"Miklotov," Miklotov interjected.

"Whatever. I need to speak to you for just a moment about the deployment of your troops in the upcoming battle." He hesitantly walked over towards Apple. Flik looked on, utterly amazed. Apple scanned the room one more time. "I told you all to get moving; come on!"

With that last order, the inn started bustling again. Rikimaru and Millie were dispatched to call in the recruiting sergeants. The remaining horses were saddled and readied to go and, fortuitously, Hanna and the wagons rolled up to the inn just in time to learn the news that they'd be turning right around again. She took the news stoically, only complaining once about the bath that she was going to miss. Apple rushed about, imploring speed, as the last of the supplies were hauled onto the wagons and the remainder of the sergeants trickled in, followed by Millie and Rikimaru.

Finally, they were ready to move out. Leona and Barbara stood on the steps leading down from the inn. "Beat those Highlanders back across the border," Leona shouted. "When you come back, we'll have a big victory party."

Barbara added her two potch. "Don't do anything stupid, like fall off your horse and break your neck." Viktor, in the process of waving to the two women, overbalanced and nearly did fall off his horse. He only blushed a little as he recovered.

Then they were under way, Flik leading the horses and wagons out onto the main thoroughfare of Muse and the late afternoon sun. Almost immediately, his horse slipped a shoe. He hoped that wasn't a bad omen. Trying to ignore the fact that his ride was suddenly a lot less comfortable, he tried to focus on the weather. The day was surprisingly warm, even for Flik's tastes, with a humid wind out of the south. The wagons creaked slowly behind him, but at least the streets were much less crowded.

Many hours later, sore and bruised from riding a horse with three shoes, Flik led them back into the Dawn Fort. During the evening and early night, dark clouds had built up and the wind had turned towards the north. Now, with distant flashes of light flickering in the heavens, Flik handed his abused horse over to the groom and carefully strode into the bailey of the fort.

Apple was quick to follow him. Catching up to him on the way to the mess hall, she said, "I need you to gather the senior sergeants for a meeting, quickly."

His stomach violently protested its emptiness. "Can't this wait until I've had something to eat?" He found himself whining.

"Eat at the meeting," Apple barked. "We don't have any time to waste."

Flik sighed, but Apple was already walking away. He tasked the first soldier unlucky enough to cross his path with the duty of gathering the senior sergeants. Then he stole into the kitchen, grabbed what remained of a loaf of bread, and started munching on it as he walked to the meeting room.

It was nearly full when Flik walked in, but someone had conscientiously left an empty chair at the head of the main table, up by Viktor and Apple. After he sat down, and the last few sergeants arrived, the meeting got underway. "As you may have heard," Apple opened. "The Highland Army has invaded Muse province and appears to be headed directly towards the capital itself. Mayor Anabelle has tasked us with the duty of launching a spoiling attack against them, and slowing them down enough so that reinforcements from the other City-States have time to arrive." A few of the senior sergeants looked uneasy at that bit of news. "We are expecting to be augmented by ten companies of Muse infantry, the Greenhill Rangers, and part of the Blue Knights of Matilda."

"Excuse me, fair lady," a voice interrupted from the back. Apple colored, though from annoyance or embarrassment, Flik could not tell. Near the door, a man stood up, not dressed at all like the other mercenaries. His silver circlet glimmered slightly in the lamplight as he spoke, "You slightly misrepresent the situation. Some of your expected help has already arrived." Captain Holm, dressed much as he had been when he'd run across Flik and the refugees, walked forward towards the table. "Greenhill remembers its commitments to the Jowston Alliance. We shall show them how well 'spindle-armed scholars and nearsighted bookworms' can fight." This statement was met by respectful applause. When it died down, Holm continued, "My men and I would be honored to serve under the command of Flik of the Blue Lightning."

"Thank you," Flik answered.

"If I may continue," Apple said, though she was smiling slightly. Then she unrolled a detailed map of the province. Pulling out a pointer, she pointed it towards a location to the north of Muse City. "Rossgard, have your men scouted this village?"

He stood up, peering at the spot on the map. "Yes ma'am. It is called Waldron, not terribly big, maybe about a thousand residents."

"Tell me about the terrain there. This map suggests forests to either side, and a range of hills to the east. How would an enemy commander -given severe constraints on his food- deal with this obstacle?"

Rossgard look a little nervous to be under Apple's direct questioning, but he thought about it for a moment and answered, "If he's truly in a hurry, then the forests to the west and hills to the east are simply out of the question. The north branch of the King's Road cuts right by this village, so he'd probably take his army straight down it."

"Your thinking concurs with mine," Apple replied. "Tomorrow, we'll march for Waldron, and set up ambush positions in the forests east of the village. The following day, we'll sweep the Highland advance units towards Miklotov's Blue Knights, who'll be arriving from the west. With any luck, we'll annihilate a major portion of the Highland Army. That is all!"

As she finished those last words, the fort shook from a resounding boom of thunder, followed immediately by rain crashing down upon the roof. The candles in the candelabras posted around the room suddenly guttered, tamped down by a cold gust from the windows. No one in the room spoke for several moments, as they all sat and listened to more distant thunder rumbling. Flik watched the shadows dancing on the walls as the candles struggled to burn properly. Finally, Viktor stood up and said, "Good night, gentlemen. We march tomorrow morning."

Flik had trouble sleeping that night, though it was only partly due to the impending battle. It was more the storm, the strength of which wasn't constant. Sometimes the rain would slow and the thunder recede into distant growling in the clouds. Then the downpour would begin anew, accompanied by flashes of light that illuminated his room and thunder that seemed to break within his ribs.

Whenever the storm was at its strongest, his awareness of the lightning rune in his right hand was also at its greatest, as it was during every thunderstorm. It did not manifest as a pain, or a twinge, or even a tingling, but merely as a presence. It was the realization that there was a part of him that was not of him, a power that only existed through the union of human flesh with runic…_what?_ A book he once read called this "Symbiosis", the ability of particularly sensitive mages to understand the powers flowing within them. That book had spoken very highly of the ability; Flik found that little comfort.

The storm surged again; light suddenly filling up every corner of his room, and then fleeing before it could really register in Flik's head. He sat up in bed, ignoring the cold as it raised goosebumps on his arms. Looking down at his right hand, he was aware of the rune, of its foreignness, of its separateness. _Am I restless, or is it?_ A longing for Odessa flooded into his heart, filling it to the brim. She was the only person he'd ever spoken to about these feelings. Even before he ever spoke his love, she would sit up with him on nights like this, gently holding his rune hand between her hands, surrounding that fragment of inhumanity with her warmth.

He collapsed back onto the pillow and shut his eyes. Sleep did not come for many hours, not until the storm was spent, and its fury blew off into the east. Only then could he sleep, dreaming of Odessa, arms clasped around his chest, holding him close.

Not unsurprisingly, the following morning was not without its share of troubles. The mercenaries, along with Holm's rangers, were ready to go at the appointed hour, but there was no sign of the ten companies of Muse infantry. While a messenger was dispatched to find out what had happened to the tardy men, Apple raged at just about everyone in earshot, yelling things like, "Somebody's going to pay dearly if we don't arrive in time to spring that ambush!"

Viktor calmly spoke, "We could always march without them."

"Not a chance," Apple retorted. "We'll need that strength in the upcoming battle. Otherwise, they'll just brush us aside."

Flik merely paced around the assembly area, rubbing his hands together for a little warmth. Last night's storms had brought a dramatic decrease in the temperatures, but at least he couldn't see his breath. There was always that. Still, he hoped the sky would stay clear so that the sun could warm things up a bit.

Eventually the missing units did arrive, their commander offering the lame excuse that they hadn't been told which fort to march towards. Apple icily retorted, "You'd best make sure that you don't lose your way on the march north."

After that, the army set out, with Holm's rangers as forward scouts, and Flik's cavalry behind them, leading the column. The march was to the northeast initially, until they reached the King's Road, where they turned north. The morning was uneventful, and for a while, Flik could indulge in the fantasy that this was only an elaborate drill. Once the noon break was finished, they began to run into refugees fleeing south. They were mostly civilians, but rather than be grateful, many looked outraged as Flik and his cavalry forced them off the road.

In the late afternoon, to Apple's obvious immense relief, Holm's scouts reported entering Waldron and finding no sign of the Highland Army. All during the afternoon, Flik had ridden past the outlying farms that surrounded any country town. For the most part, those farms had been deserted, with no one tending the early planting in the fields. The town sat at the foot of a gentle ridge, with a shallow stream running through it. To the northeast, the ground built up alongside the road into a series of forested slopes. Across the farmlands towards the setting sun, he could see another stretch of woods, little belts of trees that farther on blended into a larger forest.

The town was nearly empty; the only people remaining were too old, too infirm, or too stubborn to escape the coming menace. A stringy old man, with battered armor that was ill fitting, was all that remained of the town's militia. Apple sniffed disdainfully when he told her that the remainder had fled at the first rumor of Luca Blight's approach. She then commandeered the mayor's house to serve as headquarters. Flik was just sitting down to a meeting with the rest of the officers when one of Holm's scouts burst in, shouting, "We've spotted Highland infantry, approaching from the north!"


	16. Chapter 16 An Ignoramus for a Confidant

**Chapter 16 – An Ignoramus for a Confidant**

There was a moment of silence, broken when Viktor stood up and said, "Well, lets go see who's arriving."

"You can't be serious," Apple chided. "We need to get ready to fight. Damn, and I was hoping to spring that ambush."

It was left to Flik to ask the question that he thought was most obvious. "How many of them are there? Did you see what units they were?"

The scout answered, "there seems to be only one unit, sir. Maybe about three or four hundred infantrymen." Flik watched as obvious relief spread throughout the briefing room. At least they wouldn't have to fight for their lives tonight. The scout continued, "We've captured some of their pickets, sir. We're bringing them up even as we speak."

"All right!" Viktor shouted happily. "An interrogation." He cracked his knuckles loudly.

"Nothing rough," Apple warned. "We don't need to give Highland any more excuses for their atrocities."

Viktor frowned. "Hey, I'm one of the good guys. All I'm going to do is yell at them a little. That usually does the trick."

With a resigned wave of one hand, Apple ended the meeting. Then she, Flik and Viktor followed the scout to the north end of town. Outside, they strolled through the town, passing, at each intersection, the men who'd drawn sentry duty for the first watch. It was not quite fully dark, the last of the sun's light was fading through the haze in the west. At the edge of the village, they met a group of Holm's rangers, escorting five prisoners. The prisoners were easy to pick out, even in the failing light. They walked dejectedly, not looking at anything in particular save the ground at their feet. Well, almost all of them.

"Hey! Hands off my stuff," yelled one, in a cocksure tone. This one was a lanky young man, thin rather than tall, with a mop of dark brown hair that fell almost to his shoulders in the back. The argument was over his beige jacket, which one of Holm's men was busy trying to appropriate.

"That one," Viktor commanded, pointing at the young man. "Bring him over here." The ranger, giving up on trying to get the jacket, shoved his prisoner in Viktor's general direction. After a few stumbling steps, the prisoner straightened out, almost strutting across the street. The image of a rooster strolling unconcerned towards wolves suddenly popped into Flik's head.

Then said "rooster" noticed Apple. He smiled, smooth face marred only slightly by a cleft chin. "You, ma'am, are looking fine," he said, leering. "I'll let you interrogate me any way you want."

Viktor snorted loudly, and then fought to keep that from breaking into laughter. Apple stomped on the prisoner's foot, and then said, caustically, "Get a different prisoner, Viktor. And lock this one up in the deepest, darkest cell in this stupid town."

The prisoner was not put off in the slightest. "Anywhere you take me is fine, baby. I'm not afraid of the dark, but if you are, there's lots of games we can play-"

In a surprising show of strength, Apple lunged forward and slapped the man hard in the face, pulling him right off his feet. He fell awkwardly on his side, and then absorbed a kick in the ribs, courtesy of the enraged strategist. She might have continued, but Flik and Viktor each grabbed one of her arms and pulled her back.

Still on his side, the prisoner coughed, and then continued with, "Ouch! Spirited, isn't she? Whoever she's with, he's one lucky guy."

At this point, Viktor reached down, grabbed the prisoner by his shirtfront, and hauled him up off his feet. "That's enough of that," he growled. "I've got a game you can play. It's called I ask the questions and you answer them or I give you a broken nose."

Continuing to smile, the prisoner answered, "Oh, that one. That's so old, but I know the rules. Ask away."

Viktor glowered. "Good. How about giving me your name and unit."

"Name's Ace," he answered smoothly. "I'm not in any unit, I'm just a poor merchant from Kirov who's been caught up in this terrible war."

"Like heck you're not," Viktor said, throwing Ace back onto the ground. "Now, if you're going to lie like that, why shouldn't I go and break a couple of your fingers?"

Ace's smile only grew. "My family is expecting me. When I don't return, they'll want to know the reason why. You think the Toran Republic will stand for its citizens being kidnapped and tortured in Jowston? Maybe you want two wars, instead of one?"

Viktor growled in response and seemed to be considering violence, but Flik knelt down next to Ace, reaching for the jacket. "Hey! Hands off!" Ace yelled, showing discomfiture for the first time in a while.

It was a fairly substantial jacket, built for keeping out cold winds. "That's a pretty good piece of work," Flik commented. "What is it, deerskin?

Ace laughed. "No, no, not deerskin. _This_," he held one edge of the jacket out, "is pure, one hundred percent doeskin. Look at how soft it is. It's great. Come on, touch it; feel for yourself." He held the edge up towards Flik.

Making a great show of it, Flik pulled off a glove and felt the leather of the jacket. "That is soft," he replied. "Must've cost a fortune."

"Right about that," Ace replied. "Cost me about three month's pay it did. Those crafty Redrums have practically cornered the market in textile manufacturing. Not only that, but I had to sneak into Vinay del Zexay to buy it. The captain didn't like that, but it was worth it. You should see how the girls just fall all over me for the chance to-" He paused. "Oh crap!"

Flik nodded. "So you're Zexen, right? Thank you very much."

"You're thinking Gilbert?" Viktor queried.

"Yeah, that's about right."

"Gilbert?" Apple asked. Ace, meanwhile, was bashing his head into the ground in frustration over his stupidity.

"He's another mercenary captain," Viktor answered. "From Zexen. His unit's made up of riffraff that the council doesn't like. You know: thieves, murderers, people like that." Flik didn't comment that a good portion of their own unit's men had "questionable" backgrounds. Viktor continued, "The Zexen council likes it because they get a share of the money, and the troublemakers go off into a sort of permanent exile. I don't believe they're even allowed to return to the capital." He turned towards Ace. "So, what're you in for, buddy?"

Even though he'd just divulged his secrets, Ace remained as talkative and, now that he was being addressed again, cheerful as ever. "Wasn't my fault at all, it wasn't. Who'd have known that she was the daughter of a councilman? And she just threw herself right at me. I mean, it's not my fault, is it?" He looked at Viktor and Flik. "What would you do if some busty, saucy brunette just jumped into your arms and started planting wet ones on your lips? I swear; I didn't know she was already engaged."

"Pig," Apple muttered darkly. "Are we done here?" she asked Viktor. "Can we please lock him up and never let him see the light of day?"

"Nah, I've still got a use for him." Viktor pointed towards one of the scouts. "Find me a bunch of white sheets, the largest you can get."

"You're thinking that we ought to pay Gilbert a little visit?" Flik asked.

"Well, he does owe us a meal," Viktor remarked.

"Wait just a moment," Apple interjected. "You think this is wise, riding over to the enemy camp so you can sit down and eat with an opposing commander?"

"Zexens have some strange customs," Flik clarified. "For instance, if someone partakes of a meal in your home, they are obligated to serve you a meal the next time you visit. Last year, he'd been hired by Muse, and he ate at our fort. He may not want us to show up, but it'll be a matter of honor. He won't refuse. He certainly won't betray us."

Viktor smiled. "Even thieves and murderers respect traditions, just in case they ever need to take advantage of those things at a later date."

"You think you can turn him?" Apple asked.

"Well, we'll see," Flik confided, as some of the scouts returned bearing white sheets.

"Just be careful," Apple chided, and then smiled as she noted Viktor slipping a rope around Ace's neck. "But it would really help things if you could turn him." She walked away, back towards the mayor's house.

With Ace secured, Flik and Viktor, along with an escort of twenty men, rode in the direction of Gilbert's camp. The men had torches, and the sheets had been rigged into flags, hopefully visible in the limited light. Outside the town, the King's Road angled slightly to the west, avoiding the hills and forests to the east. Once again they passed empty farmhouses, heading towards the encampment in the distance. They were not even halfway to the camp before they saw Gilbert's response, in the form of a group of torch-bearing men approaching.

At shouting distance, one of the Zexens yelled, "Halt! State your business or else depart."

Viktor hollered back, "I am Viktor, of Viktor's Mercenary Army. I've come to have dinner with your leader, Gilbert."

There was now a pause, but in short order the same Zexen shouted, "Advance, Gilbert will see you." Viktor and Flik did, followed by the escort, and Ace. The Zexens were led by a sergeant, who took one look at Ace and sighed despairingly. Ace tried to shrink into his jacket. The Zexens guided them to the camp, centered on a large farmhouse. Most of the soldiers had taken up defensive positions behind the stone wall that served to mark this farm's fields from the next farm's.

From the gate in the wall, a man wearing a blue greatcoat and a red cape called, "Well, if this isn't a pleasant surprise; it is good to see old friends again." Flik stifled laughter; Gilbert certainly didn't look too happy. His arms were crossed in front, and the frown on his face only served to accentuate his finely trimmed brown beard, groomed into a point on his chin.

"We were in the area," Viktor bantered happily, "and we thought we'd drop by and catch up on old times. We've even brought you a gift." He tugged on the rope around Ace's neck; the prisoner, who'd slunk back into the shadows, now staggered forward into Gilbert's view.

"Heh-heh…Hi there, boss," Ace said, shuffling his feet and looking at the ground.

Gilbert's frown deepened, heightening the creases in his narrow face. Flik noticed that the hair around his temples was going gray.

Viktor dropped the rope that held Ace. "Well, you've served your purpose. Go on back to your unit."

"I'll have some words with you," Gilbert muttered. "Later." Ace practically sprinted into the camp. Gilbert turned back to Viktor and Flik, sounding a little more pleasant as he said, "Well, come in, come in. I promised I'd serve you a fine Zexen meal, and that's what we'll have." Viktor and Flik dismounted, leaving their horses in the care of the escort, and then followed Gilbert through the camp towards the farmhouse.

The Zexen soldiers looked wary, many of them at work checking their weapons and armor. They seemed to have come to the realization that there might be a battle tomorrow. The house itself was a large, two story building painted in white. It was the house of a prosperous farmer, and his fields stretched for many acres off to the north and west. At the door, Gilbert looked back for a moment, and seemed to hesitate over whether or not to allow them their weapons. In the end, he said nothing, but opened the door and walked in.

The original owners of the house did not seem to be present, and much of the interior suggested a hurried departure. A child's doll rested haphazardly against one wall, ignored and lonely. Slight discolorations on the walls hinted at paintings that had been removed, though by the owners or the Zexens, Flik could not say. Gilbert walked down the foyer, past a set of grand stairs leading to the second floor, and through a door on the left, which opened into a large dining hall with a long table. A number of his sergeants were already there, ten in number, seated along both ends of the table. Gilbert took his place at the head of the table and gestured Flik and Viktor into the two seats at either side.

"By the grace of Sadie," Gilbert began, "we will be able to offer you venison at this meal, though these southern white-tail deer are somewhat smaller than the red deer of my homeland. Now, let us drink to your health." At this, a pair of servers appeared from the kitchen doors, each bearing a decanter. "Fine Zexen greenleaf," Gilbert observed, as the steaming brown liquid was poured into a little porcelain cup by Flik's right hand. Viktor snatched at his cup almost immediately, but was forestalled by an out thrust hand from Gilbert. "First, the blessing," he explained, keeping his tone polite. "If you would all rise," he continued. Standing up with the others, Gilbert placed his right hand over his heart and spoke:

"Sadie, Protectress of the Hunt, we thank you for our bounty. Saint Loa, speaker and guide, may our hearts fly as straight and true as our arrows, to reside with our great Goddess."

Sitting back down, Flik briefly reflected on the Zexen mode of worship. Rather than follow the dominant devotion to the True Runes, they worshiped a deity they called Sadie. This dissent against the True Runes was prevalent in both Zexen and the Grasslands and also, ironically, among the people of Warrior's Village. It was Odessa who'd made him learn these things, rather than his own experiences in those lands. She used to give him books, chiding, "I will not have an ignoramus for a confidant." Flik stared down into his cup of tea. With those words, she had declared her interest in him, and he'd worked diligently to meet her standards, but she'd still slipped away.

"You seem deep in thought," Gilbert said, his words snapping Flik out of his reverie. "Mind telling me what about?"

To stall for time, he took a modest sip of the tea. It was harsh and bitter, as the Zexens preferred it. Gilbert was still waiting for an answer, so Flik replied, "I was thinking about religion, that's all."

Gilbert guffawed and then, after sipping his tea, continued, "I can see why. Sometimes the fact that we don't follow the Twenty-Seven comes as quite the surprise to our clients. Not so much in Jowston, I suppose, but in Highland, and especially Harmonia, it always seems like there's some priest or bishop walking around telling people exactly how the ought to worship, even what words to use. No sir, not at all like Zexen. We like our prayers simple and short. No repetitious empty formulas for us." Gilbert paused to sip again. Viktor had downed his tea with one gulp, and was trying not to look too obvious about his impatience for the main course. Flik remained silent, allowing Gilbert to ask a question. "Since we're on the subject. How about Toran? I've never been there, so maybe you could tell me how you all worship?"

Flik considered for a moment, and then said, "For the most part, they follow the Twenty-Seven True Runes. In Gregminster they're pretty serious about it, but they're also serious about ignoring Harmonian rules. Uh, but in Warrior's Village," he hesitated a moment, "my hometown, they don't follow the Twenty-Seven True Runes either."

"I see," Gilbert mused. "But you didn't say what you yourself followed. You were in the Liberation Army, right? So you've seen one of the True Runes -these gods, as they say- up close and personal. What did you think?"

Flik wondered about what to answer. His first thought was to immediately answer that he followed the Way of the Warrior, but that wasn't entirely true. He'd walked out on the Way years ago, even if he did remember and follow its tenets. Memories intruded on his thoughts, images of Odessa teaching him the devotions for the True Runes. They often prayed those devotions together, both morning and evening. He held those moments close to his heart, but he'd not spoken even a word of the devotions since the day he learned that Odessa was dead.

After thinking about it, Flik decided to dodge the first part and answer the second. "The power of the Soul Eater is undeniable," he said. "As for the rune itself, well, I'm sort of the wrong person to ask about that. You'd want to track down Tir McDohl, if you could. We didn't really speak a whole lot about the rune." _Well, we didn't speak more than once…and I still learned far more than I wanted. _"He never wanted to talk about it, much. It brought him incredible sadness." _It brought a lot of people incredible sadness._

Gilbert nodded, just as the kitchen doors were opened and the main course brought out. The venison was served in thin slices, covered in a mushroom gravy, with a whole baked potato on the side. There was also broccoli in a fine cheese sauce and freshly baked pumpkin bread. Everything was good; Gilbert seemed to have found some aspiring cooks in his unit. The talk during the main course was casual and light, mostly Gilbert's officers talking about their exploits back in Zexen, and about their families. Neither Viktor nor Flik had much to offer to this conversation.

Then dessert was brought out, an apricot pudding that was very sweet. Finally, Gilbert's face became very serious and he asked, "Why have you come here? You did not come just to get a meal off me."

Flik answered, "Why are you fighting for Highland? Just last year you were with us in East Muse."

Scowling, Gilbert replied, "And Muse didn't extend my contract. If they wanted my services, they should've paid the potch."

Flik tried a different tack. "Haven't you heard about the atrocities that Highland committed in East Muse? How can you work with such monsters?

Gilbert did not look very happy as he said, "Because they pay me. Besides, rumors are just rumors; both sides throw them out in every war. It's all just talk."

Seeing that he'd hit a nerve, Flik continued with, "You're letting the potch blind you, Gilbert. Or maybe your Goddess is the type that condones sitting idly by while villages burn and children die screaming?

Gilbert growled out his response, "Zexens do not do that sort of thing." Then he shook his head, collecting himself. "So what, you want me to abandon my contract and turn against Highland? Why should I do that, especially when they're going to win?"

Viktor chuckled. "You've lost your touch, Gilbert. Luca Blight got lucky in East Muse, but now he's overextended himself, and the whole Jowston Alliance is mobilizing against him. How's he going to stand against that? And what about yourself? You're in the scout position, what do you think is going to happen to your unit tomorrow, when you come into battle?

"This whole discussion is worthless. Highland will push you aside and march on to Muse." Gilbert did not sound very convinced as he said this. His sergeants were casting nervous looks in his direction.

"You are a proud Zexen warrior," Flik interjected. "You shouldn't have to dirty yourself by taking potch from scum like Luca Blight."

"Besides," Viktor offered, "we'll take up your contract for this battle, and then you can get a new one from Anabelle. She's got lots of potch to throw around these days." He grinned. "Time to get in on the winning side."

"She has lots of potch, you say? Well then, double my current contract of one hundred thousand potch and you'll have my attention." Gilbert glanced from Viktor to Flik, trying to gauge the reaction.

"Done," Viktor answered.

Gilbert's eyes widened in surprise and then narrowed, realizing that he should've asked for more. Still, he responded, "I guess this…is fate. Okay, we're on your side, now. I hope you've got some sort of plan, because there are five thousand Highland soldiers under Solon Jhee that are going to show up tomorrow, for sure. And there are fifteen thousand soldiers behind them."

"We do," Flik confirmed. "Tomorrow, we'll be in ambush positions in the forests north of town, near the King's Road. When half of Solon Jhee's men have marched past, we'll spring the ambush, drive the unit in two, and smash the southern group against the Matilda Knights, who are waiting to the west."

Gilbert drummed his fingers on the tabletop. "That certainly sounds feasible. I would not want to get caught by such an ambush." He smiled grimly. "What do you want my unit to do?"

"You should report to Jhee that the road ahead is clear," Flik replied. "Then you can march on to Waldron and hold it against any Highland attacks."

"I see." Gilbert thumbed his chin thoughtfully.

"No tricks," Viktor warned. "We've still got some of your men as prisoners, so don't go doing any stupid stuff."

"By the grace of Sadie, there will be no tricks," Gilbert affirmed.

"Good." Viktor nodded. "Then, I think this little meal is done. It's been a pleasure to partake of your excellent hospitality."

The ride back was made in silence. The Blue Moon was now a crescent, far in the west. The Scarlet Moon was higher, just under half full. It was a warm night, slightly humid and calm. Somewhere out in the fields, Flik could hear the sound of bullfrogs croaking. Ahead on the road, some sort of wildcat stalked into view, lifted its head to look at the riders, and darted back into the darkness.

Apple was waiting for them as they returned to Waldron. "So, you survived the dinner date," she remarked. "How did things go?"

"Gilbert has agreed to work with us," Flik announced. "He'll tell Solon Jhee that the road is clear and then march towards Waldron in the morning."

"That works well." Apple nodded. "Go and get some sleep. We'll be moving out for the ambush positions shortly after midnight."


	17. Chapter 17 The Last Harvest

**Chapter 17 – The Last Harvest**

Morning came slowly to the forest, cool and damp, a heavy mist settling in among the trees, obscuring men from each other, even as the darkness tempered to gray light. Flik looked out beyond the trees, out towards the fields and the King's Road. He could see little, even of his own men, waiting around him for the order to launch the ambush. But that wouldn't be for some time, though everything was long prepared. He turned, walking back through the trees, his men all about on either side, but still entirely alone. There was a clearing several hundred yards behind the edge of the forest, a small space, filled with long grass that dampened his black pants and blue cape as he walked in. In this solitude, he spoke a few careful words:

"At the dawn of your day, Rune of Punishment, guide my thoughts,

Teach me that my evils are evils against the brotherhood of man,

Help me to bear your just penance with a humble, grateful heart,

Remit the evils that I do to others, as I remit those evils done to me,

Pour not the cup of wrath over this earth, but show us mercy at the last harvest."

The devotion ended, Flik stood listening to the morning songs of the birds. They suddenly took wing as another person entered the clearing. "Saying the devotions?" Apple asked, softly. Flik turned around, noting the young strategist wading through the grass. "At Soledt they used to get us up before dawn, so that we'd be able to attend the sunrise services." She laughed. "Every day they did that. I grew to hate those prayers, repeated over and over, in their weekly cycle. I never felt like I'd had enough sleep." As she spoke, Flik decided that she didn't sound very resentful over them now. "What about you?" Apple continued. "It's not like a Warrior's Village child to go picking up foreign religions."

Flik remained silent, not able to trust Apple with the secrets of his heart, and not willing to lie to her so soon after saying the devotion. She smiled, seeing his discomfort, and let the subject slide. Instead, she said, "We've received news from Gilbert. He delivered the message and has been ordered to advance. His unit moved out about half an hour ago. Solon Jhee's units are about an hour and a half behind. I'll tell you when to launch the attack." She nodded and walked back the way she'd come.

Flik returned to his men, waiting on the Highland Army. The mist began to thin; Gilbert's men were only an indistinct mass as they marched down the road, one hundred yards distant. Then there was more waiting. Flik had the senior sergeants stand down the men in shifts so that they wouldn't get overtired from the tension.

Finally the sun rose up above the eastern slopes and the mist was burned away, gone in a few moments of full sunlight. The advance units of the Highland Army were visible, marching in a long blue and white line down the King's Road towards Waldron. They did not seem to be marching with any scouts or flankers deployed. Instead, company after company of infantry marched passed Flik's position, the spacing between the units ragged and uneven. They seemed to be marching as if Luca Blight himself were watching, cracking a whip over their heads and enjoining more speed.

A slight tap at Flik's back broke his concentration, and he nearly tripped looking back to see who it was. It was Hanna, who said, "Apple wishes you to attack as the very last company of crossbowmen approaches. Your attack will be the signal for the rest of the units. Good luck." Then, without waiting for any confirmation, she slipped away through the undergrowth, making nearly no noise as she moved. He sent that message to the four senior sergeants: Rossgard, Tarrance, and two newly promoted men, Danel and Jerrim. Everything was in readiness; only the last few moments of uncertainty remained.

Rank after rank of crossbow-wielding Highlanders marched by. It was mesmerizing; he had to blink a few times before he realized the end was in sight. One of his men was leading his horse up. Flik took the reins and mounted, the last of the mercenaries to do so. Some of the newer ones were fidgeting, hands running up and down the length of their Fire Spears, but all eyes were on him.

"Advance," Flik commanded, pointing one hand towards the Highlanders. "At a trot, open order, single rank."

He led them out, the clear sunshine falling warm and bright on his head. The sun stood a little before noon. Flik could see the opposing men react to their sudden presence, officers running up and down the lines, trying to get the men to change facing. They were well trained, but they had hardly begun to form a line before Flik yelled out, "Halt! Prepare Fire Spears!"

In the previous battles, the distances had been too great or it had been too dark to really see the Highland soldiers as individuals. It was not so this time. Flik could see young faces blanching with fear, eyes gone wide, mouths working -perhaps in prayer, perhaps not. He shut them from his reasoning mind.

"Fire Spears! Attack!"

As inexorable as the tide, flames surged from the Fire Spears, a consuming wave of red and yellow that engulfed the first lines of Highlanders. Scoured them completely away. It continued flowing, tendrils of fire snatching at the soldiers many ranks back. The unit disintegrated, men hurling their weapons to the ground and running from the conflagration as quickly as they could. Someone near Flik started retching uncontrollably.

A slight west wind started blowing the smoke -and the smell- back into Flik's face. "North," he commanded, pointing with his sword. The sergeants followed suit; the two companies of mercenary horsemen trotted in that direction, followed by the two companies of Holm's Greenhill Rangers. A unit of Highland heavy cavalry, possibly five companies, was coming down the King's Road. They did not wait on Flik's approach but turned and retreated as his units stepped onto the cobblestones.

He looked back, trying to gauge the progress of the battle to his rear. Viktor's companies, eight of them, had launched their attacks. Riou and Jowy would be somewhere in there. Farther south, the ten companies of Muse infantry were also attacking, but looked to be somewhat behind the mercenary infantry. Hopefully, the Highlanders were under the impression that all of the mercenaries had Fire Spears. They certainly did not look to be putting up much of a fight at the moment, as they were beating a hasty retreat over the farmlands, heading towards the west. And, if everything went according to plan, they were retreating right towards Miklotov and his Matilda Knights.

Back to the north, Flik noted another Highland unit's approach. These were horse archers, maybe a full ten companies, and, if he judged the banners correctly, these were the same horse archers he'd skirmished against outside his fort. Their commander would certainly remember the effects of Fire Spears, and deploy his men accordingly. Flik wondered if he could turn this to his advantage somehow. Calling his senior sergeants, he set Tarrance to hold the left flank and Rossgard to anchor the right flank. He would stay in the center with the two new commanders. Holm's men would be the reserve.

Then he led the mercenaries towards the Highland riders. At extreme range, the opposing commander launched a first volley of arrows. Most clattered short on the road or buried themselves in the turf of the adjoining fields, but even so, a few struck home. Flik heard the pained whinny of a wounded horse and the curses of injured men.

Gesturing towards the enemy with his sword, Flik ordered another Fire Spear attack. The flames arched gracefully towards the opposing horsemen, but even as they hung in the air, the riders were already turning about, scattering away. Fire crashed down onto the road, but Flik was unsure as to how much damage had been done. Then he saw the enemy reforming, off the road, slightly to the west of their original positions. Glancing in that direction, he knew that he could not allow Highland to flank them and link up with their cut-off allies.

"Left! Left!" Flik yelled. "Extend the lines left." He swung his sword in that direction for emphasis. Sergeants rode along the line, relaying the order. The movement was jerky; training was poor and the new recruits were certainly not used to formation movement. There were some minor bumps and falls as the inexperienced mercenary horsemen trotted west. More arrows began raining down as they were completing the change. One smacked into the ground no more than three feet off to Flik's right.

Swallowing the impulse to shift his location, he ordered the Fire Spears into action again. As before, the Highland cavalry simply broke ranks and gave ground, leaving only tilled farmland to be scorched. Angrily, Flik watched the pillar of smoke mount skyward and ordered a pursuit of the enemy. About half a mile farther on, he suddenly halted, bringing the chase to an abrupt end. Memories of his awful charge at Scarleticia Castle during the Toran Liberation War swirled in his head. For the next twenty seconds, he spat invective at the ground, until his frustrations cleared. He knew he couldn't let his emotions carry him right off the battlefield. Charge too far ahead and some enemy was sure to outflank him and cut him off.

The Highlanders, seeing that the chase had stalled, swung about again, continuing their nuisance attacks. Flik glanced around, looking for a good position. A hundred yards back was a lane with a low wall of fieldstone just beyond it. There was some sort of stone building on the other side of the wall. Without hesitation, he rallied his horsemen back to that wall, the men dismounting behind it. The Highland horse archers advanced as Flik fell back, and he ordered the Fire Spears to drive them away. To his consternation, a few of the spears failed to engage, though most continued to spew fire.

The enemy gave way, disappearing behind fire and smoke. For another half-hour, Flik and his men waited tensely at the wall, but no further attacks seemed to be forthcoming. Relaxing just a little, he ordered the men to see to the wounded, and eat what they could. He took the moment to ascertain the nature of his surroundings, as well as the course of the battle. To the rear, the Highland army seemed to be mostly in retreat, but a fierce battle appeared to be underway around a farmhouse and orchard about a mile and a half distant.

Flik walked towards the dark-gray stone building that had caught his attention earlier. It was a low, rectangular structure, maybe fifty feet by twenty, without windows or any visible ornamentation. The only entrance was around to the front, and the floor beyond was half a foot below the landing. Ducking inside, Flik was immediately oppressed by the darkness of the room, the cool and damp atmosphere, and the closeness of the ceiling. There was little else inside, only a bank of votive candles just inside the entrance, a small, raised altar in the back, and a shallow holocaust pit just before it. The floor was simply beaten dirt. In here, the earth and stone seemed to reach out to shield and embrace…or possibly smother and suffocate.

Flik knew what this was: a shrine devoted to the True Earth Rune. Farmers, in particular, loved the True Earth Rune, along with the True Water Rune. The True Runes of Fire, Lightning, and Wind were considered too fickle for devotion by men who tilled the ground, and the other True Runes too distant. Sacrifices of crops and animals would be held here, for the continued fertility of lands or families, or for the repose of the dead. There might be a priest or deacon that served this shrine, or it might remain unattended until one of the travelling priests showed up, to offer services for a few weeks and then depart. Regardless, the shrine was empty now, save for the tiny flickering flame of one of the votive candles. Someone had been here earlier this day to pray, Flik realized. He wondered what that prayer was for, and if it would be answered.

All of a sudden he noted that he still had his boots on, when one was supposed to enter a True Earth shrine without any covering over one's feet. Flik wondered if he ought to be abashed, shook his head, and walked back out of the shrine. The bright warmth of the early afternoon sun was a shock and a relief, though he'd only spent a few moments inside. Around to the rear was, not unexpectedly, a graveyard. It was surprisingly large, possibly even a dozen acres, and after a few steps Flik found himself surrounded by quiet gravestones.

He let his feet guide him down the path of least resistance, sloping down towards a little babbling stream and a giant, ancient willow tree whose branches and leaves hung thick and green down to the ground. A few of his men were down by the water, filling canteens, which were strung around their necks like giant beads. The graves here were older and fainter, dating back a century or more. Just by the outer fringe of the willow's branches, Flik found a gravestone that drew him to it.

What he saw was a black obelisk with a carving of the True Sun Rune on it. That was unusual; most people preferred the True Earth, or the Rune of Life and Death, or even the Rune of Punishment. He pulled off a glove and ran his fingers across the aged inscription below the rune, reading it by his touch on the worn, pitted stone. "My dear wife, whose beauty outshone the rising sun, whose death has dimmed the lights of heaven, rests here." He worked his way down the monument to, Cherri Ellisbard - in Solis 305 to 331. Flik's mouth tightened a little. At her death, this woman had been younger than he was now. He continued reading, down to her children, though he almost stopped at the first one: Boy - in Solis 322. Her first child had either been stillborn or died within a few days, and she had only been seventeen. The rest continued: Girl - in Solis 324, Boy - in Solis 325, Tabita - in Solis 327 to 330, Girl - in Solis 329, Rekard - in Solis 331 to 416.

The wind murmured in the willow, softly drawing a strand of leaves across Flik's cheek. His eyes were watering. Suddenly he looked away, hearing someone running towards him.

"Captain Flik! Captain Flik!"

"I'm here," he said, taking a few steps back up the hill. The men down at the stream had stopped what they were doing to look his way.

"Captain, sir, a message from Tarrance. He's spotted those Highland mounted archers; they're to the northwest, sir. He says they're moving west to outflank us."

Flik nodded. "Go back, tell him to extend his line. Tell him that I'll extend the rest of the men to cover." Then he looked down at the men by the water. "All of you, get back to your units. I'm afraid the battle's started again." He scrambled back up the slope, dodging past gravestones to get to the stone wall. "Extend the lines," he yelled. "To the left! To the left!"

Sergeants got the rankers underway again, while Flik sent messengers off to inform Rossgard and Holm of the change in position. He mounted his horse and walked along the wall to the west, scanning the distant fields to the north. Those same Highlanders, the mounted archers, were still to the north, but now also a third of a mile to the west of Tarrance. This was not good; if he had to extend the lines any farther, the half-companies would end up as little isolated groups. _Little isolated groups?_

Flik snapped his eyes back around to dead north. Smoke was billowing up in great dark clouds from the earlier Fire Spear attacks, but little flame. He realized his mistake just as a gust of western wind picked up.

"Back! Back to your positions," Flik shouted. Jerrim's half-company, which was riding past him, stopped and milled about, even the sergeants momentarily confused. "Back to the wall," he ordered.

Just then, parting the smoke at a full gallop, Highland heavy cavalry came into view, a full five companies worth. With no time to dismount, the mercenaries simply settled their horses right where they were. Flik growled, unsheathing his sword. If that heavy cavalry pierced his lines, he would be in definite trouble.

"Fire Spears!" Flik pointed his sword towards the oncoming enemy. It glittered in the sunlight. "Attack!"

They did. This time the Highland units did not scatter and draw away, but pressed home the charge. He watched as they came on, driving right into the fire. But there was a gap in the flames, a flaw in the wall of fire. Flik looked down his line; incredibly, three consecutive Fire Spears had failed to engage, the men staring dumbfounded at their weapons. Enemy cavalry was pouring through the gap.

"Close that gap!" Flik yelled, catching the attention of the closest mercenaries. He pointed his sword at the offending location. Moments later, fire prevented the advance of any more horsemen. The ones that were through, however, were now bearing down on the stone wall. Jerrim's half-company was far too few to cover every spot along the front, and in moments blue and white cavalry were all around Flik and the men.

Grabbing the closest available man, he yelled, "Go get Holm and the rangers. Have them come right to this position. Hurry!" That man rode off, moments before the battle closed up around Flik. A dozen of his own mercenaries had formed up into a half circle around him, faced by at least twice that many enemy cavalry. "Spread out," he shouted. "Spread out, you're all too close together. We'll get swamped over if we can't move."

Jerrim, who was among the men around him, never got to give that order. Flik watched as the newly promoted senior sergeant took first one and then a second mace impact off his light helmet. The second attack shattered not only that side of the headgear, but also half his face. Bonelessly, he slid partway off his horse, held in position due only to the tightness of the formation. Raging, Flik thrust his right arm into the gap in his men and let his anger charge the lightning rune. At this range, the blinding light and deafening sound were instantaneous, and Highland cavalrymen were blasted off their horses without ever knowing that they'd been hit.

A moment later the rune's fury was spent, and Flik had to work to steady his horse, dancing in the press. Other horses were rearing, eyes rolling, as the mercenaries fought to control their mounts. Seven heavy cavalrymen lay on the grass, some with armor that was caved in, others with black flash burns on their exposed skin, and some that didn't look touched but were quite motionless anyway.

More horsemen arrived, but these were Holm's men. The Highlanders were falling back, retreating into the cemetery. After a few seconds, Flik was able to relax slightly from his keyed-up tension. Death was not imminent, at least. He looked around, seeing Danel's half-company approaching from the west, and Rossgard coming in from the east. Flik tired to sort out his thoughts, as some of Holm's men spread out, using their horsebows to keep the Highland cavalry at bay.

"Sir!" one of the mercenaries yelled, nearly in his ear. "Something approaching us, but darned if I know what to make of it."

Flik looked where the man was pointing. At first, he couldn't make anything of it, either. It seemed to be a mounted rider, but the motion of the mount wasn't that of a horse. Besides, the rider was too small to be a fully grown man. Then, incredibly, he figured it out, and started laughing. Other soldiers around him began laughing too, as they saw what approached.

The horses, on the other hand, were none too pleased with the new arrival. They started rolling their ears, pinning them back, and a few of the new recruits actually had their horses start to dance and rear a little. Shiro the white wolf pulled up just short of Flik, panting heavily, and permitted the kobold, Gengen, to dismount. Even now, Flik wasn't sure how Gengen had actually managed to ride on the wolf, but he listened carefully as the kobold delivered his message, in an excited, high-pitched voice.

"Captain, sir! Apple requests that you move your units to the west, to the forest, and try to intercept the fleeing Highland infantry. She says that the Matilda Knights have not shown up and the Highland forces are escaping."

Before Flik could answer, another messenger, this time on horseback, rode up.

"Sir, Tarrance reports Highland mounted archers are trying to cross his front, to the west. He's trying to hold them off with Fire Spears, but without reinforcements, he doesn't think he'll be able to for long."

And then Holm came over, to offer his status report.

"Commander, we've got about one hundred Highland cavalry pinned down in the cemetery, but they've got a good defensive position. That giant willow just seems to snatch arrows right out of the air, and they're prying up gravestones to make entrenchments. I'd like your help on this one, because it's going to be real knife work to try and get the Highlanders out of that."

Flik's head was spinning. He buckled down, trying to think on the most immediate problem. "Let's go down and see if we can't talk those cavalrymen into surrendering." Holm nodded and led the way. His rangers had formed a rough circle around the enemy, centered on the stream and willow tree. The Highlanders were hunkered down behind piled gravestones, unable to do much, but also enough of a threat that they couldn't be ignored. Flik yelled, "Surrender and we offer proper treatment under the rules of war. You're cut off from the rest of your countrymen; there's nothing to be gained by dying here."

The response was immediate. "We don't surrender to those who break treaties and slaughter our children! We don't surrender to those who use outlawed weapons to burn our soldiers! Your words are meaningless, bastard!"

_Outlawed weapons, does he mean the Fire Spears?_ Flik frowned; he couldn't afford to waste time in hand to hand combat. With a shouted command, he called his two remaining senior sergeants forward. "Rossgard, set your men to the left, Danel on the right; prepare to use Fire Spears." It was only a matter of moments before the men were positioned properly. Flik looked back at the Highlanders. Perhaps they could see what was coming, but they obstinately continued to throw taunts at the soldiers surrounding them. He pointed his sword down at their positions. "Attack!"

Raging fire flowed down the hill, racing between and over the gravestones, hissing and steaming as it made contact with the water. It took the willow a little longer to catch, the fire hungrily licking at its leaves and slender branches, finally taking hold, curling them back on updrafts of hot air as the tree turned into a mass of flames. Gravestones cracked under the heat, some disintegrating into piles of stone shards. The black obelisk of Cherri Ellisbard was one of the latter. "Enough," Flik shouted, sheathing his sword. The Fire Spears returned to dormancy. He turned to Holm and spoke, "Take prisoners, if you are able. They can't have much fight left after that."

He turned his horse and led the men back up to the wall and into the lane. At the top, he said, "Rossgard, your half-company will hold this location, just in case any more cavalry decides to come at us. Danel, we'll take the other two half-companies in support of Tarrance. Let's go!"

He was just about to ride to the west when one of the men shouted, "Look there!"

There was back to the south, and Flik did look. A shining orb of white was rising over the battlefield, slowly spreading out into a dome. The edge of that dome was rushing towards his men, far faster than they could've run from it, so he simply let the light swallow his formation.

What followed lasted only a moment, but in that second, Flik was surrounded by…life. He could think of no better way to describe the runic power he felt. Its magnitude was similar to the power he'd felt out of the Soul Eater, a True Rune, so he deduced that this power must also be from a True Rune. An instant later, the dome dispersed, leaving Flik surrounded by more than a hundred shaken men. His horse, on the other hand, was perfectly calm, as were all the other horses he could see.

People began to point back to the cemetery, giving gasps of shock, and Flik worked his horse back to the wall. At first, he rational mind refused to believe what his eyes told him, what his ears heard.

"Captain…sir…we're fit for duty," Jerrim said, in a small voice, at the head of eight mercenaries who'd previously been lying, supposedly dead, on the turf. It seemed that only his men, and not the Highland dead, had been raised by the spell.

Flik studied him, his helmet was still shattered, but his face looked fully healed. More than that, his face looked as though it had never been damaged, with no scarring at all. The men behind Jerrim were all fidgeting at the spots where they'd taken what should have been fatal wounds. Only two corpses remained on the grass: one man who'd fallen from his horse and snapped his neck, and another who'd bled out from a ghastly neck wound.

Flik shook his head, steadied himself, and ordered, "Sergeant, take command of your half-company. We're moving out to the west." It was only then that he saw the eight patches of withered grass that corresponded exactly to the locations where those eight men had fallen.

With one last glance at the newly risen sergeant, just to remind himself of the reality of it, Flik began to trot down the lane. A rising cloud of thick, black smoke gave omen to the battle ahead. It was not more than ten minutes before they came across Tarrance's half-company, giving ground to the Highland mounted archers.

"Sir," he panted heavily. "Too many of them for just my men to handle. Fire Spears are giving out on us, too."

Flik scanned down the road. The mounted archers were maybe four hundred yards away, spread out into a long crescent formation, with the two extreme flanks extended towards his mercenaries. At the moment they were just holding their ground, after all, they didn't have to do anything else to achieve their goal. For behind them, another fifteen hundred yards back, were the disorganized groups of Highland infantry that should've been smashed to bits by the Matilda Knights. Instead, they were retreating to the safety of the north.

For just a moment, Flik considered ordering a charge, engaging with the Fire Spears. In his mind, he could see it working, his men sweeping aside the mounted archers, falling on the dispirited infantry, and savaging them with fire and steel. Then he started thinking about it. With the Fire Spears starting to fail again from overuse, it was doubtful that he'd be able to break the mounted archers. Instead, he'd probably end up fighting at ten to one odds and getting completely overrun.

He waved a messenger over. "Send this to Apple. We cannot intercept the retreating Highland infantry. The enemy is already well established to the west and the Fire Spears are too taxed to make another assault. Awaiting further orders."

He sent the message off, and placed his men in a line, perpendicular to the road, with Jerrim to the south, Danel to the north, and Tarrance in the middle. Flik was not expecting an attack, but he did not want to be caught in a bad formation should the Highland army launch one. Another half-hour passed and Holm arrived with the better part of his men, only leaving a few back to herd sixty-three Highland prisoners into Waldron. By this time, most of the retreating enemy had already passed on to safety. The mounted archers were beginning to pull back, still maintaining their discipline.

By the time Apple's response arrived, it was entirely moot. Not unexpectedly, she did not order any attack, but merely to keep the enemy under observation until it was clearly established that they were not going to continue the fight, and then fall back to Waldron. Flik did so for another hour. With the sun inching into the west, Rossgard sent a report noting that the Highland heavy cavalry was withdrawing from the field, ending the threat on that flank.

There being nothing left to observe, Flik ordered all the units under his command to make for the town. Bypassing the lane and shrine, he rode back by the direct route, cutting across the fields to make his approach. About halfway there, he came across the farm and orchard that had been the scene of intense fighting earlier in the day. The buildings of the farm were mostly gutted, but that wasn't what caught his attention. The orchard seemed to be in a particular state of disarray, with half the trees barren and stripped of all their leaves, and the other half impossibly heavy with ripe plums.

Curious, Flik walked his horse over to a small group of mercenary infantry who were busy preparing the corpse of a fallen comrade for transport. They looked up as he approached, saluting respectfully. "At ease," Flik replied. "What happened here?" he asked, gesturing to include both sets of trees.

"Well that's the thing," one soldier responded, an older man with a thick growth of facial hair. "Highland infantry made a pretty fair stand here, and we were having trouble rousting them out. Then the new senior sergeants, Riou and Jowy, you understand, they came along and they used…powerful magic." He nodded reverently, as did the others. The storyteller continued, "Riou's magic was a bright light that expanded overhead, and wherever it touched, our wounded men, including some that we figured were quite dead, suddenly recovered all of their strength and were able to fight again. It was only some time later that we saw that all the trees around Riou had gone dead…had the life sucked right out of them. Also the grass, you can see, it's all shriveled up." He bent down and plucked a few pieces, lifting them up so Flik could examine them.

They were indeed dead, crumbling into powder as he closed his hand around them. "How about over there?" he asked, pointing at the plum trees.

"Well, that's Jowy's magic," the old soldier replied. "He pointed his hand at the enemy infantry, and black blades suddenly appeared, striking them. And whenever they touched a man, he turned to dust and blew away. Strange thing is, that's when the trees behind them started bearing fruit. You can also see it in the field beyond. Look at that corn, it's already higher than a man's chest when it shouldn't be but little sprouts."

Flik looked; it was as the soldier had said. "What happened to Riou and Jowy?" he continued. "Are they all right?"

"They both fainted shortly after that. They were carried back to the town." He jerked his thumb in that direction.

"Thank you. Carry on, then."

He was about to ride off when another one of the soldiers stood up, this one nervously twisting an arrowhead that he'd strung around his neck. "S-s-sir?" he stammered. "If-if you see sergeant Riou, sir, c-could you please thank him for me? I've seen lots better men die from the same sort of wound that I had today, but," he gulped, "but it hardly seems fitting that he'd waste his power on someone like me. I just…just tell him that I promise never to do nothing bad ever again…and I'll settle down, get me a wife and some kids…and I'll even go to the shrine once a week."

Flik smiled. "I don't think you need to do all that."

"Yes, I do!" His eyes were frightfully pleading. "All sorts of good men went to the last harvest today, and yet he chose me to keep living. Tell him, please!"

"All right," Flik answered softly. "I'll see that I do."

The light from the setting sun was just beginning to turn the fields red.


	18. Chapter 18 The Lucky Ones

**Chapter 18 – The Lucky Ones**

_In Solis 460, Shieldsdei, the 6th of Mai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I would not want to be a Matilda Knight right now. I think Apple would seriously try to murder the next Matilda Knight she meets. Their message says they withdrew because Highland attacked their border, but I don't think that's going to mitigate anything in her eyes. Instead of a crushing, decisive victory that would end this war, all we got was a few days respite for Muse. Worse than that is the implication that the Matilda Knights won't be able to reinforce Muse as quickly as we'd hoped. The next reinforcements, from South Window and Greenhill, are more than a week away._

_Riou and Jowy are recovering. I think the power of their True Runes -what else can they be but the Sword and Shield- came as a surprise even to them. They have become something more than mere sergeants in the eyes of the men. Especially Riou, who they see almost as an angel of mercy. I've even started hearing whispers of Genkaku's name out of some of the senior sergeants. I had hoped -I still hope- to shield them from all of this, somehow._

_I learned the other day that Nanami has taken up a water rune to assist Tuta with the healing. Not only that, but she'd acquired a double-beat rune somewhere. I had not thought of her as the type to accept runes so readily, but it seems conflict changes all of us. It's strange, almost all of the Battle of Waldron is a blur in my memory, but I can still clearly see the shattering of Cherri Ellisbard's grave. When they write the histories of this war, no one will even note that, but I shall always remember._

_Will they even recall the Battle of Waldron, when it finally comes time to write the histories?_

Flik rubbed his temples and set his diary down on the table, squinting as the morning light filtered in through the windows of the tavern.

"You shouldn't have had so much to drink last night at the victory party," Leona scolded him with a smile, as she set down a plate of sausage, scrambled eggs, and warmed peach slices in front of him.

"I didn't see you trying to stop me," he replied wearily.

Still smiling, she continued. "Not my job. You're a grown man, you're supposed to be able to take care of yourself."

Flik might have groaned, but at that moment, Viktor staggered down the stairs, making enough noise for five men. His hair was a tangled mess, his face was unshaven, and his clothes still had beer stains on them. Eyes unfocused, he plopped down into the chair across from Flik and mumbled out, "Get me a beer…in the largest container you can find. And one for Flik, too."

"Not until you've had something to eat," Leona scolded. Viktor stared up at her with glazed eyes, unable to work out any argument to counter. "You shouldn't drink on an empty stomach. And no, I'm not going to give you beer out of the largest container I can find." She departed, returning after a moment with a plate similar to Flik's and two small cups of beer. Viktor frowned. "Eat well," Leona said. "You'll need your strength to keep beating the Highland Army back."

Flik was just polishing off the last of the sausage when Riou, Jowy, and Nanami came down the stairs. The two boys looked in better spirits than they had at any time since the battle. Nanami, too, seemed exuberant enough, but she kept casting worried looks at her brother and Jowy when she thought they weren't looking.

Viktor glanced up from his food and greeted them with, "Oh, you two. It's good to see you both up and walking about."

"I'm here too," Nanami exclaimed.

Viktor squinted, then put a hand over his eyes, slowly craning his neck as if thoroughly examining the room. "Yes, I guess you are here. Just didn't notice you." Nanami stuck out her tongue. Viktor, after chuckling, continued. "So, you're going to see Anabelle today, aren't you? You can give her the full report; just make sure to mention what a great job I did, okay."

"Who did a great job?" Nanami asked mockingly. "All you had to do was get near them, and they ran away because of your stench."

Flik snorted, and the beer in his mouth burst up into his sinuses. Viktor mimed sniffing at his armpits. When Flik had recovered the use of his vocal faculties, he warned, "Just don't leave the city. We don't know what the Highland Army is going to do next, but their patrols could certainly be nearby."

They nodded. Jowy, sounding both excited and nervous, said, "Let's go, Riou. You want to hear about Master Genkaku, right? And then they were gone, though Flik could hear them babbling boisterously as they set off down the street.

He looked down at his empty plate and cup, then back up to Viktor. "So, what's on the agenda for today?" Flik asked.

Viktor smacked his lips on the last of the peach slices. "Well, I plan on taking a nap later on, and then I'm going to go see Anabelle tonight. It turns out that Leona saved a bottle of Kanakan Red, so I thought we'd do a little celebrating."

Flik had no idea what he was going to do, but before he did anything, there was one piece of administrative duty he had to attend to. Getting up from his chair, he walked out of the inn to the street beyond. A group of about one hundred mercenaries and a few attendant sergeants were milling around expectantly. When Flik stepped into view, they all looked at him. "Gentlemen," he began. "You are the lucky ones. You've drawn leave for today. So, disperse, have fun, enjoy yourselves…don't get into trouble. Remember, if you don't make muster tomorrow, you don't get paid. The sergeants have been assigned sectors of the city, but if you do have problems, it's your responsibility to know where the sergeants are and get to them. Don't expect us to come and haul you out if you get in too deep. You are all dismissed, I don't want to see any one of you until tonight." The men cheered and immediately set to the task of grouping up and deciding where to go. The sergeants tersely yelled out their planned locations.

Flik returned to the inn, where he found Viktor in the process of begging Leona for another drink. She adamantly refused him. Flik also noticed Pilika sitting on the bar counter, watching the exchange with an even expression. She still hadn't said a word, though she'd rushed firmly back to Jowy's side when they'd arrived back late last night. He went upstairs, depositing his diary with the others. He took out the one that detailed his life with Odessa, still bearing tooth marks from Bonaparte's attack, and glanced at the entries. He couldn't help but smile sadly; he'd really been a different person back then, impulsive and temperamental. He still couldn't say fully why she'd loved him, only that he knew she had.

After some time, he came back downstairs. Viktor was still at his table, sulking into his empty cup. Leona was wiping down the counter, Pilika carefully mimicking her moves with another dishrag. Flik walked over to Leona, who glanced up at him when he got close.

"I was wondering," he asked, "do you know if there are any libraries in Muse?

"You mean a collection that's open to the public, right?" she responded. When he nodded, she continued. "There's the one attached to the Mayor's office. It's supposedly public, though not too many people actually go there. There are a couple of the richer senators who maintain public collections, but they tend to like people to make appointments. They're also unlikely to look kindly on a mercenary captain, so your best bet is the Mayor's office."

"Thank you. If there are any urgent messages, that's where I'll be." He was about to leave but suddenly Riou, Jowy, and Nanami came back through the inn door. They did not look very happy. "That was fast," Flik said. "You didn't get to see Anabelle?" He guessed this from their faces.

Nanami answered in a frustrated tone, "She was there, but she told us to come back tonight. She was in a meeting; they were all arguing over something."

Flik shook his head. "Well, they haven't seen Luca Blight on the field of battle, so they can't really understand the urgency."

Pilika, meanwhile, rushed over to Jowy, embracing him tightly. He seemed a little uncomfortable at her sudden display of affection. Glancing towards Nanami, he spoke in a subdued manner, "Pilika, I'm sorry, but I've got to go out for a while. Nanami, could you play with her for a bit?"

Nanami looked puzzled but replied, "Yeah, I guess I can. Where are you going?" Jowy did not respond but only turned to leave. Pilika reached out and grabbed him by the back of his blue shirt. Nanami called out, "Over here, Pilika. You can play with me and Riou for a while."

Pilika retained her grip on Jowy, but with a quick swipe of one hand he knocked hers off his back. In a strained voice, he pleaded, "I'm really sorry…Pilika. I'll make it up to you somehow." Then, walking quickly, he disappeared out the door.

There was a melancholy silence in his wake. Somberly, Pilika wandered over to Nanami's side. Nanami hugged the little girl to her; Riou stared at the door intently, dismay evident in his face. Leona clicked her tongue behind her teeth and went over to console both Nanami and Pilika. Viktor was frowning.

Not really sure what he was intending, Flik walked to the door in pursuit of Jowy, but he was already out of sight by the time Flik got to the main thoroughfare. The streets were quiet today, most of the civilians that were out were simply drifting aimlessly. More people waited by the south gates, anxiously trying to get out of the city. The guards had barred the way, refusing to let anyone in or out, regardless of permits. The sky was overcast, but didn't seem to be promising any heavy rain.

With a shrug, Flik set out for his original destination, the library. On the way, he passed a few of his own sergeants who greeted him with nods or salutes, but he saw almost none of the Muse City patrolmen. He wondered how long Anabelle would be able to keep the city calm if it came to riots.

Eventually he arrived at the terraced gardens out in front of the Mayor's office. To his surprise, Jowy was also there, resting on a nearby bench. He seemed utterly preoccupied by something, not even registering Flik's presence. Flik considered upbraiding the youth, but seeing him in such a funk, he reconsidered. After all, they had all been under a lot of pressure recently, and maybe Jowy needed to find recovery in solitude. Flik smiled; wasn't solitude at least part of the reason why he was going to the library?

He slipped past Jowy and up into the columned arcade. He followed this around a corner and saw the library farther back. It was past an ornamental pond with a little fountain and a carefully groomed hedgerow. There were reading benches and shade trees lining the path. Flik walked past all of this, right up to the main door of the library itself. There didn't seem to be any attendants, so he opened the door and stepped in.

Inside it was dim, the only light coming from a few lit candelabras and an open window at the far end of the building. This main room was a long hall, lined on both sides by shelves and cubbyholes that contained disorderly stacks and piles of books and rolled scrolls. There were several small tables randomly scattered about, the closest of which seemed to be in a terrible state. It was covered with books and papers and someone seemed to have thrown an old cloak onto one side.

"Hello," Flik called. The room remained silent; he could hear the echoes of his shoes off the tiled floor. "Anyone here?"

All of a sudden, the cloak on the nearby table rose up, and Flik took a startled step to one side, his hand reaching for the pommel of his sword.

"Tsk, tsk," an old, thin voice spoke. "What can I do for you today?" The speaker was a bent old man, little taller than Flik's sternum. He seemed to disappear into the furry cloak that he was wearing. He made a quick adjustment of his thick glasses to get a better look at Flik and then asked, "So, are you interested in military tactics? I assure you that we've got the complete _Strategicon _of Julian Silverberg. You could do no better than to study at the feet of the greatest."

"Actually," Flik interrupted. "I'm interested in the True Rune of the Beginning."

"Oh." The old librarian's face fell a little. "Over this way," he said blandly. How he knew exactly where his books were, Flik could not tell, but without wavering, the old librarian led him to one particular book. "Here you go," he said, pulling a fairly thick book out. "This should be just about your speed."

The book was dusty, and it exploded in a cloud in Flik's face as he opened the tome up. After sneezing a couple of times, he read:

"In the beginning was darkness. And darkness cried a tear of loneliness. That tear became the two brothers, Sword and Shield. Sword said, 'There is nothing that I cannot cut,' and Shield replied, 'There is nothing that won't shatter against me.' Then the two brothers fought, to see who was the stronger. Sword smote Shield, cutting him into two parts, one of which ascended to become the sky, and the other that became the earth. But even as Sword struck, Shield shattered him into a million pieces. Those shards flew into the earth, one half raising high mountains and the other half carving out deep trenches that became oceans. The sparks from that battle became the stars. The thirteen jewels on Sword's pommel became the Thirteen True Runes that uphold Order, and the thirteen jewels around Shield's boss became the Thirteen True Runes that uphold Chaos. And the True Rune of the Beginning, ever divided, balances them all."

Flik closed the book, getting rewarded by another blast of dust in the face. When he'd finished coughing, he spoke, "I was hoping to read something a little more…practical. Perhaps you have something that records the actions of previous bearers of the Sword and Shield."

The old man's face lit up again, and he capered excitedly. "Well why didn't you say so in the first place?" He snatched the book out of Flik's hands and stuffed it back in place. "You really should be more precise in what you ask for, it'll save you a lot of trouble in life." He wandered towards a side room, and Flik followed behind cautiously. This room, though smaller, was a warren of shelves and ladders arrayed without any obvious logic or reasoning. Just inside the doorway, the old man stopped, looked around, and shouted, "Marianna! Marianna, where are you girl?"

"Here, sir!" Flik looked up and saw one of the many ladders sliding along a shelf. A young woman was perched on the top, long blue skirt and blond hair billowing slightly as the ladder approached. Almost before it stopped, she was working her way down, one arm cradling a pile of scrolls while the other was used for balance. Closer now, he saw that she was wearing a cream-colored blouse and -as appeared ubiquitous in this library- glasses.

Gracefully she descended the ladder, placing one shoe on the ground, and then she promptly rolled that ankle. The scrolls that she was carrying flew into the air as she toppled. Flik managed to snatch one just before it hit him in the face. Another unrolled up against his foot.

"Oh! Sorry, sir," she said, abashed, as she crawled around on her hands and knees, trying to collect the documents. The head librarian shook his head, but made no other move. Flik, on the other hand, knelt down to help her with the mess. After he'd grabbed a couple of the papers, he reached out to get one final scroll, and found that she'd slipped her slender fingers around it first. He looked up, seeing her mist blue eyes through the lenses of her glasses. She began to smile under his scrutiny, and then blush.

"Enough," the librarian snapped, and Flik looked away. "Just dump those anywhere. Marianna, I need you to get my notes on Genkaku. This fellow wishes to see them."

"Yes, of course," she replied quickly and scurried off behind one of the bookcases. Flik set the scrolls in his hands in a neat pile at the foot of the ladder and followed the librarian over to a table. Marianna was back quickly, carrying a folder crammed with loose papers. She placed it down on the table, and the old man opened it up.

The interior was jammed with papers of every size and description. Flik tried to read the handwriting, but couldn't make out anything. It seemed that its author was also having difficulty. "Two…gah!" he muttered. "Two heads…of something or other. Confound it! Marianna, what does that say?"

She glanced at the words and cheerfully said, "I believe that it reads, 'Two heads of lettuce.' I think it is a grocery list, sir. The next one is for three mackerel."

The old man chewed on his lower lip. "Of course it's a grocery list, but what's it doing here?" he demanded.

"I wouldn't know, sir."

He crumpled the list and, in a surprising show of vigor for an old man, tossed it across the room. Then he flipped the pages, apparently looking for one in particular. He seemed to find it, for he stopped, muttered a few words, and then spoke:

"There was one time when Han and I discussed the runes. Mine, the Bright Shield, had the power to give life back to any man who had even the faintest flickering of that flame within him, but at every usage, the earth around me would wither and die. The other, the Black Sword, obliterated life as readily as mine restored it, but marked its passage with trees and flowers abloom. I often wish that we had not been lead to those runes, for they seem cursed to bring Han and me into conflict. I can count more than half a dozen times where, on disparate battlefields, we should never have crossed blades, yet there we were, face to face. And each time, I am sure that our two runes desired that we fight. I think that, as soon as the peace agreement is worked out, we shall go back to Toto and try to seal these two runes away. I would not wish their doom on any person."

The librarian stopped reading. "So, that what you're looking for?"

Flik nodded. "Did he say anything else? It looks like you've got reams on him."

"When I was younger, I'd hoped to write a book on Genkaku. He talked about everything: his childhood in Toto, his rise through the ranks of the Muse Army, even his old girlfriends. The only things he didn't really want to talk about were those two runes. This was the most I ever got out of him on that subject in one sitting. Maybe he would've said more later, but he went off to Kyaro and never came back."

"He is dead," Flik explained. "He died in Kyaro a few years ago."

"Is that so?" The librarian sighed. "He was a good man, and we need his like in these times. Ah, but perhaps you know something else. The rumors say that both the Bright Shield and Black Sword are active again. People are even whispering about a son of Genkaku."

Flik paused, trying to decide how much to reveal. "I have seen the Bright Shield in action. As for Genkaku, he adopted two children."

"I see." Incredibly, the old man was scribbling Flik's words down haphazardly across a piece of paper. "I'd like to meet them, if you could arrange it. They probably have lots of stories to tell."

"I don't know how much they'll be able to tell you. Genkaku apparently did not tell them much of his past. Perhaps after the fighting dies down, if they want to, I'll bring them here, and you can talk to them." He looked at the light falling through one of the upper windows. It was further on in the day than he'd expected. "I hope you don't mind, but I must be departing."

The librarian nodded sagely. "This has been a more interesting day than I had hoped for. You, sir, are welcome in my library whenever you wish. Marianna, would you show him to the door?"

"Yes, sir!" With one look back at Flik to see if he was following, she walked from the room. Then her foot slipped, the same one she'd rolled earlier, and she started to fall, but Flik lunged forward and down on one knee to catch her before she hit the ground.

"You okay?" he asked.

She was looking right at him again, and blushing. "Just a little dizzy, that's all. My, but it's warm in here. Don't you think so?" She fiddled with her glasses, but didn't seem to be making any moves to get out of his arms.

Flik stood up, half carrying her upright as well. Now securely, at least for the moment, back on her feet, Marianna inclined her head slightly and turned to lead him to the door. As he stepped outside, she said, in a modest little voice, "I hope you come back again soon," and then closed the door before he could even turn to reply.

A warm wind gusted at his back as he stood there. It was very humid and a fine drizzle hung in the air, already dampening his forehead. It was after lunch, and Flik suddenly felt his stomach rumble, so he set out to return to Leona's. Coming around to the front of the Mayor's office, he noted that Jowy seemed to have moved on. With the wind now in his face, he picked up the pace and ducked his head slightly. By the time he'd returned to the inn, he was just beginning to get uncomfortably damp. As he opened the door, he caught the trail end of a conversation.

"-you think it will get to a siege, Leona? One of the maids has a soldier friend who says the Matilda Knights aren't coming."

"I think you shouldn't spend any more time worrying about these sorts of things than you have to," Leona replied. She was at her counter, talking to her friend Emma, the proprietress of the inn. "Viktor and Flik beat the Highland Army just the other day. Even if it comes to a siege, this city has good, solid walls. I think we can ride it out until the reinforcements arrive."

Flik took the moment to shake some of the moisture off him. Emma, caught up in her own concerns, didn't notice, but Leona did, frowning slightly. Then she turned back to listen to Emma, who was continuing with, "But just the thought of the Highland Army that close, it terrifies me. I'm hardly sleeping at night."

Leona embraced Emma, but Flik didn't hear her reply because another voice cried out excitedly, "Reach!"

The speaker was Nanami, sitting at a table across the room. He walked over and saw that Nanami and Millie were playing some sort of game involving tiles. Millie was frowning slightly, clearly not happy with the way things were going in the game. Pilika was sitting to the side, watching the two of them with interest. Bonaparte sniffed curiously at a discarded tile.

"Come on, Millie, make a move," Nanami said, as Millie desultorily rotated a tile in one of her hands.

"I still don't get how to play this," Millie pouted. "But here, I guess I'll discard this one."

Nanami whooped joyfully. "Ron! Ron! Ron! It's a Tir McDohl, and that's Tsumo." She snatched up Millie's piece and placed it with her own. Then she smiled and said, "So, shall we settle the score?"

"What are you playing?" Flik asked, coming up to the table.

All of its occupants turned to look at him, Millie's face brightening considerably when she registered his presence. She answered, "Oh, hello Mister Flik. Nanami bought this game from a traveler earlier today. She's been going around trying to get people to play it with her."

"It's called Ritapon," Nanami lectured. "It was originally from the Island Nations, at least, that's what the guy told me."

Flik examined one of the tiles. "If it's from the Island Nations, why does this tile have Tir's face on it?"

Nanami laughed. "Silly, that's because this edition is from the Toran Republic. Look," she held up another tile. "They've even got you!"

He squinted at the visage on the wood. "That's not me," he answered. "They got the ears way too big, and the eyes…and the hair." He brushed some of that hair away from his eyes.

Nanami turned back to face Millie. "So, you want to play again?"

Millie grimaced. "Maybe later." She got up, collected Bonaparte, and walked towards the stairs.

"What about you, Flik?" Nanami asked. "I can teach you the rules."

He was spared having to answer when Barbara entered the room, took one look at the table, and declared, "That's Ritapon, isn't it? My idiot husband had a set, all ivory tiles, but he was never any good at it. Stopped playing once I was able to beat him on a regular basis. Here, I'll play a couple of rounds." She sat down in the chair across from Nanami, depositing a load of laundry in the free chair at her side. Nanami seemed happy enough with this new challenge, so Flik backed away.

Walking towards Leona, he saw her catch Millie's attention. "If you're not doing anything, I could certainly use some help with the dishes."

"Phooey," Millie muttered. "That's so boring."

"Boring or not," Leona scolded. "It's something that has to get done. Now, are you going to help out, or not?"

"I want to fight, not do dishes," she whined. Then, noticing Flik's approach, she asked, "Why does Nanami get to fight, but not me? I can use a boomerang."

The truth was that Nanami had forced her way in when Riou and Jowy had joined, but Flik didn't want to give that answer to Millie. Instead, he racked his brains for a suitable excuse and replied, "She knows how to defend herself. She's trained in martial arts for many years under a good master. Besides, she's taken on runes to help the war effort."

Incredibly, Millie smiled. "Nana always told me that I had a strong runic potential. So, if I get a rune, does that mean that I can join the fighting?"

From behind Millie, Leona frowned. Flik answered, "Let's wait and see, okay?"

"And that being that," Leona interrupted. "Now will you help me with the dishes?"

Millie disappeared behind the counter to do dishes, and Flik sat down at a nearby table. After a few minutes, Leona walked over with a bowl of soup, which she placed in front of him. The soup was very watery, with only a few chunks of meat and some pathetic vegetables floating in the broth.

Before he could ask, Leona said, "Sorry about the soup, but some officials were by earlier today. Said they were going to do an assessment of all the food in the place. Apparently they're doing that all over the city. Not only that, but they've stopped letting supplies in, so Emma's getting stingy with the servings. Anyway, eat up." She smiled and went back to help Millie with the dishes.

Midway through his soup, Nanami and Pilika came over to his table. "Want to play?" she asked, dumping the Ritapon tiles down onto the table.

He glanced around the room: Barbara seemed to have gone off somewhere, and Leona and Millie were busy. With a shrug, Flik answered, "Why not?" Nanami got to work arranging the tiles. Flik after another swallow of soup, asked, "Where's your brother gone off to?"

Nanami frowned. "He left a little after you did. Said he was going to find Jowy and talk to him."

"Jowy was outside the Mayor's office earlier, but I didn't see him there when I was coming back."

"Never mind," Nanami said, a little tersely. "Let me teach you the rules."

He played a couple of rounds, but couldn't eke out a win in any of them. The closest he came was when he was one tile short of a Tsumo, and that tile just happened to be his own face. It turned out that Nanami had three tiles bearing his countenance in her own hand, which she gladly showed upon declaring "Tsumo!"

Then Viktor came down wearing a new yellow shirt, freshly shaved, and with his hair slightly more presentable than in the morning. Flik sniffed; Viktor even seemed to have applied some sort of odor…much too liberally.

Viktor sauntered over to the bar and suavely spoke to Leona, "The bottle of Kanakan Red, if you would."

Showing great discretion, she didn't laugh. Instead, she gave him the bottle and admonished, "Don't let her drink too much. Wine's not good for the baby."

Viktor flinched visibly at the mention of the baby. Still, he recovered his composure and confidently asserted, "We'll just have a glass or two. I'm only going up there to talk, anyway, so it's not like we're going to get plastered."

Now she did laugh. "Enjoy yourself, then. Don't keep her up too late."

Walking towards the door, Viktor retorted, "Yes, mother!" And then wisely ducked out.

Flik excused himself from the game and went up to his room to take a brief nap. However, he slept a little longer than he'd wanted, for when he woke up, the sun was setting. When he came downstairs, dinner was being served, in the form of a roast duck, freshly baked bread, and an assortment of winter vegetables. All of Riou's recruits seemed to be there, as well as Apple, Barbara, and Leona. He learned that Riou and Nanami had left not long ago to speak with Anabelle, and Viktor returned from his little engagement even as Flik sat down to eat a couple of slices of meat. Only after he'd finished his second slice did it occur to him to wonder if Jowy had been accounted for.

He was just about to ask Leona when one of Viktor's sergeants burst through the inn door. The conversation in the inn waned as people turned to look at the man's panicked expression.

"What's up?" Viktor said, apprehensively, catching the changing mood.

"Sir," the sergeant responded hastily, "we've got serious trouble."


	19. Chapter 19 Only One Move

**Chapter 19 – Only One Move**

Now the interior of the inn was deathly quiet. However, when he strained his ears, Flik was confident that he could hear some sort of distant tumult filtering in from outside.

"What's happening?" he asked, dreading the answer.

"There are Highland soldiers in the city," the sergeant responded. "They've breached the western gates somehow."

There was a sudden piercing shriek, and Emma collapsed onto the floor. Leona and Barbara quickly rushed over to attend to the fallen proprietress. Other people began to speak, each new voice adding strength to the panic building in the room.

A sharp whistle brought silence again. As people rubbed their ears, Apple took her fingers out of her mouth and said, "Enough! No one will speak out of turn! First, everyone not associated with leading a unit should go and prepare for departure. Get everything you need. Go!"

Flik watched as her commands sank in. Incredibly enough, people followed her orders, not with any great enthusiasm but also not with any panic. Apple, the image of perfect serenity, walked over to Viktor and Flik.

"It's finished; there's no chance of holding Muse now," she declared.

"What?" Viktor barked. "You can't be serious! We can't give up now."

"Do you think the City Patrolmen will be able to stop trained Highland soldiers?" Apple asked.

Viktor wasn't done yet. "But there's still the army. It's in the Ring Forts, all they've got to do is-"

"Come down and fight house to house? Be serious, Viktor. Do you think any of those commanders, outside of Hauser, have the stomach for that sort of thing? As soon as they hear that the city has fallen, they're likely to surrender as a group to the closest Highland general."

Viktor was out of arguments. Flik spoke. "What do you want us to do? I don't think you're advising surrender."

She laughed, but there was an edge of despair in her voice. "Actually, that might be the wise thing to do. But that's not what I want to do, and I don't think that's what you want to do either." Viktor growled in an affirmative manner, and she laughed again. "Right. There's really only one move. What you two need to do is get to the Dawn Fort and bring your men down the King's Road. Get Gilbert too, he'll probably come. Meet us at Bernand's Crossing, and we'll go south to Coronet and cross into South Window territory. Hopefully the fight can be continued there."

Leona walked up. "What about Riou, Jowy, and Nanami? They're all out right now."

Apple shook her head. "We can keep somebody behind as long as possible, but if they don't return…then they don't return. That's all there is to it." She looked back at Viktor and Flik. "You two should go. Now."

They did, walking across the common room to the door leading into the stables. The grooms were standing in a small circle, anxiously discussing the developments. Flik ignored them, tacking up his horse, and, when Viktor had finished, they rode out. Some of their own mercenaries were gathering at the entrance to the inn. As Flik passed, he ordered, "Stay and protect Apple and the others. We'll meet you at Bernand's Crossing."

Then they were past, trotting along the main avenue in near total darkness. The stars of the night sky were obscured by clouds, racing along on a warm southern breeze. The Blue Moon was not yet risen, and the Scarlet Moon was a feeble sliver of pale light in the west, appearing only intermittently when the clouds permitted. The street lamps were unlit. Distantly, Flik perceived the sounds of battle, but everything close at hand was silent.

Suddenly figures appeared out of the darkness. Flik was on top of them before he even realized they were soldiers. He and Viktor rode right through them, not bothering to slow down and engage them. One crossbow bolt chased them down the street, finally bouncing along the cobbles ahead.

After that, they continued on with weapons drawn. Flik tucked his shield in close, letting his legs do all the work of keeping him in the saddle and guiding his horse. In this manner, they got through several other groups of soldiers without any fighting. They reached the entrance to the causeway just as a squad of Highland soldiers arrived. Viktor, bellowing at the top of his lungs, charged at them. Flik followed behind, making only slightly less noise as bolts of lightning flashed towards the defenders.

Had they stood, they might have presented a severe challenge, but the Highlanders scattered, allowing the two of them ingress up the slope. Flik begrudged even the time it took for them to get up the cliff side. While his men were sitting in the fort, the enemy was moving, maybe even cutting off their retreat. That was a possibility he had to acknowledge.

At the top of the ramp, by the conference hall, they paused to rest the horses. Flik noted that the guards for the hall seemed to have gone missing. He could see a section of the city burning below, not a large portion yet, but it would spread if left unattended. They did not wait long after that before riding to the east. The Dawn Fort was still many hours in that direction.

Midway there, a group of horsemen accosted them. Viktor and Flik pulled up, weapons at the ready. Flik flinched slightly when a lantern on a long pole was thrust towards his face.

"Commander! Sir!" Rossgard called out. "We're glad to see you. There's all kinds of news and rumors about tonight."

Flik swatted the pole out of his face. "Yes, well the truth is that Highland soldiers have already entered Muse and seem to be moving about without opposition."

"So you haven't heard," another voice responded. This was Gilbert, who looked as though he'd bitten into something sour. "The reason there's no opposition is because Lady Anabelle is dead. It happened tonight, just after sunset. Some senator named Kerwin has claimed the office of mayor and has issued orders calling for all city forces to surrender."

Viktor shook his head vehemently. "It's just a ploy. If Anabelle were dead, Jess would take over. No. This is all some sort of power play by a schemer. She's still alive, and we need to find her and keep fighting."

A third rider stepped forward. This was Holm, who said, "If we're going to keep fighting, we're going to have to move quickly. My scouts have spotted Highland cavalry coming down the King's Road. If they box us into the forts with the city held against us, we will be in serious trouble."

"Apple thought so too," Flik explained. "We're pulling out and heading for South Window."

Gilbert tugged at the corner of his mouth before he said, "I'm coming with you. It wouldn't do me any good to get caught by Highland at this point. Besides, I'd be a laughingstock if I abandoned two contracts in the space of a week."

Without any further comment, they continued on. A messenger was sent galloping ahead with orders to prepare the men for departure. By the time Viktor and Flik arrived, the controlled chaos of getting all the men together had just about finished. Holm led his rangers out first to scout the road ahead. Gilbert and his Zexens followed. Then Viktor began the process of marching his companies away from the fort.

As this was going on, three men rode in from the west, two ordinary soldiers and a lieutenant. He was, in fact, the same portly officer who had handed the keys to the Dawn Fort over to Flik. His flab bounced in rhythm to his horse's strides as he trotted over to where Flik waited.

Dispensing with any preamble, he yelled, "What are you doing? Stop this at once! The terms of armistice were quite specific: 'All units associated with the Muse Government, including all mercenaries, are to stand down and wait in place for further orders.'"

"Interesting," Flik shot back. "But you see, we consider ourselves under contract to Lady Anabelle, not the government. Since she is no longer mayor, she's not associated with the Muse Government. Therefore, we don't consider ourselves bound by any agreements made tonight."

"Stupid mercenary! Your lover is dead. Now I demand that you call your men back."

It was a good thing that Viktor was out of earshot. "I have no proof that she's dead, but even if she was, we'd still be leaving. I have no intention of being caught by Highland. Now, if you want to stop us, by all means, go ahead and try." Flik grinned at the end of this declaration, pulling his sword free from its scabbard.

The lieutenant paled as Flik's men gathered behind their leader. The two soldiers with the lieutenant made no move for their weapons. Finally he said, "I knew this would happen. You mercenaries don't have any discipline. It's your fault for not stopping the Highlanders three days ago, and now you're ducking out on the consequences."

Flik's smile faded. "I'm not going to stand around and waste time assigning blame. I, at least, remember my responsibilities." The last of Viktor's men had just departed. All that remained in the fort were the two companies of Flik's mounted archers. "We're going," he shouted towards Rossgard and the lead half-company.

From behind, he heard the lieutenant shout, "I demand that you give back the keys to this fort!"

Well, that was one thing he could do. He fished the metal key ring out of his coat pocket and tossed it over his shoulder, careless of who trampled it into the dust. Then he was out the gates, leaving both the Dawn Fort and Muse behind.

The first part of the retreat went off without a hitch. Even in the darkness, the raised, paved surface of the King's Road was impossible to miss. They followed this south for several hours, with Flik and his men in the rearguard position. As they approached the intersection, Bernand's Crossing, things began to get troublesome. Refugees were streaming all over the place, terrified people who'd fled the chaos in Muse with little more than they could carry. They clogged the road, listlessly wandering in whichever direction seemed to offer the most safety.

Eventually, Flik led the rearguard into the town that sat around the intersection. The sun was just beginning to rise, blazing red through the clouds, as his men joined the rest of their army in the middle of the town. Amazingly enough, Apple had managed to bring everyone from the inn safely there. Well, almost everyone.

"Riou, Jowy, Nanami, and Pilika are all unaccounted for," she reported tersely.

"I spoke with Riou and Nanami when they returned," Leona added. "I told them to make for South Window if they didn't meet up with us. They took Pilika. I never heard from Jowy though."

"Maybe that's for the best," Flik commented. "If they're not with us, the Highland Army won't be searching for them. They'll be able to slip away somewhere and get away from this war."

"Maybe," Apple said. "But I don't think so. Somehow I think they'll turn up again. I can't help but feel that they're important to this."

Flik shrugged to mask his own thoughts. He also doubted that he'd seen the last of those kids. Meanwhile there was a hurried meeting of the commanders in the intersection. A quick head count by the senior sergeants suggested that fully two hundred men had deserted during the night march. Most of them were new recruits from Muse City. Flik did not blame those men for leaving, especially when they might have families that were in danger. Still, every man that left would shake the morale of those that remained. He knew that men do not fight well if they believe their comrades are going to leave them in the lurch.

Apple was about to give out the marching orders when one of Holm's scouts interrupted the meeting. "Sirs, there's a Highland cavalry unit coming east down this road. They're approximately a thousand men."

Viktor looked towards the strategist. "Do we deploy? We've got enough men to hold them off."

Apple shook her head. "No. If we deploy and fight, then the Highland forces coming from the north will have time to catch us. We'll just have to turn and run for it."

"That won't do at all," Holm suggested. "You won't be able to outrun them, and then this retreat will turn into a rout. My men and I, we will hold them back while you escape. We will be going in that direction anyway. I must get back to Greenhill to deliver this news to the acting Mayor."

"Fine. I'll leave that in your hands," she assented. "Gilbert, you are to make all haste towards the town of Coronet. Make your way to the port and convince as many ship captains as possible to wait for the rest of our men. Physically seize the ships if you must. Understand?"

"I do," Gilbert answered and rode off to give the orders to his men.

"Viktor," Apple continued. "You will follow at a fast march with our carts in the middle of your formation. Flik." She glanced his way. "You must keep any Highland pursuit troops off of us. It will have to be your men alone, I'm afraid. We cannot afford to lose any more time in a fixed battle."

Holm walked his horse forward, shaking hands with both Viktor and Flik, and then kissing Apple's hand. She even blushed when he did so. Then he said, "It was a pleasure to serve with you all. I invite you to visit me in more peaceful times. I live in Forest Village, northwest of Greenhill. I don't have much of a family, but there is my brother and his wife. They have a daughter who's just a little younger than you are." He gestured towards Apple. "She's a real fire spark, but loves animals. Anyway." He bowed in the saddle. "Until next time. May we meet again in more peaceful days."

He turned and led his men off to the west. Not long after that, Viktor's Mercenary Army departed on the southern portion of the King's Road. The pace of the march was wearying, especially as the heat came on. Men, mostly those with less experience, began to drop out of the line from exhaustion. The sergeants would go to them, exhorting them to get up and keep going, warning them that they would be left behind if they stopped. Some of the men did get up and resumed the march; others remained where they were, shrinking into the distance as the army moved on.

This section, between Coronet and Muse City, was built up, with houses and shops lining both sides of the pavement. As the mercenaries passed, civilians began to gather in their wake, people fleeing the wrath of Luca Blight and the Highland Army. The rumors seemed to be flying faster than the mercenaries were able to march, and soon the road ahead was also filled with refugees.

And then the Highlanders did appear, about a thousand cavalry, quickly coming down the road from the north. It was mid-afternoon with the sun's heat radiating through the heavy clouds, making the air simmer. The King's Road was just beginning the wide turn to the west that marked the final approach to Coronet. Flik and his men had just crested a hill and could faintly see the blue shore of Dunan Lake.

Yet as close as they were, the enemy would overtake them before they got to safety. Flik would have to turn and beat them back, probably with the Fire Spears. He quickly ascertained the terrain; this hill was as good a place to meet them as any. He set the men in a line, Rossgard in the center, Jerrim and Danel to the flanks, and Tarrance as the reserve.

Unfortunately, there were also refugees between Flik and the approaching Highland cavalry. They streamed through his lines, but more appeared, as if suddenly realizing that there was going to be a battle. And with each passing second, the enemy drew closer. Worse yet, they did not seem to be exercising any restraint with the noncombatants, running down anyone in front of them.

Flik walked his horse a few steps forward, shouting, "Get out of the way! Clear the road!" The crowd of people hardly seemed to notice his voice. He rode back to his line, snatched a Fire Spear from a very surprised Rossgard, and turned back to the crowd. "Get off the road!" he commanded, and then shot a burst of fire down onto the pavement at his feet.

The refugees recoiled but appeared to get the idea, many of them scattering away from the flames. But not all did, and as the road cleared, the Highland charge began to pick up speed. Flik rejoined his men, tossing the Fire Spear back to Rossgard. He drew his sword from its scabbard, watching it as it flashed in the light.

"Fire Spears!"

His eyes fixated on the figures trying to get out of the way of the Highland charge. There a feeble old man, unable to do more than crawl, and closer, a couple, arguing by an overturned cart. Closer still was a young boy, gallantly trying to lead his little sister out of danger, but they were heading towards Flik, not off the road.

"Sir?" Rossgard asked.

Flik's horse danced nervously, receiving contradictory signals from it's rider. He wanted to go down there and save those children. He could go down there and save those children, he knew it. He could get there ahead of the Highland cavalry, but not far enough ahead. They'd be pressing hard on his heels as he tried to get back to his lines. His men wouldn't be able to wield the Fire Spears effectively, and the enemy would crush them by sheer weight of numbers.

"Sir," Rossgard said again. "If you want, I shall give the order."

"No," Flik responded bitterly. He did not face his senior sergeant. "It is my responsibility, I will give the command." He looked one last time at the road. The boy and girl were still struggling forward, and behind them, the lances of the enemy cavalry were coming down.

"Fire Spears!" He kept his eyes locked on the children. "Attack!"

The command was followed; fire flowed down the hill.

The sun was setting as Flik and his men worked their way through the streets of Coronet. The gates had been open and unmanned, and the shops and residences on the hillside had been shuttered. Now the mercenaries were navigating the twisting warren of alleys and sprawling warehouses that made up the port. There were escapees here, and they packed the streets. As his men forced their way across a bridge, he could see people spilling into the water below.

Eventually they made their way down to the wharves. People milled around here as well, surging towards the few remaining galleys in the harbor. There was a clear space around two of those galleys, that space enforced by the stern glares and pointed spears of Viktor's mercenaries. Flik pushed his way over there.

"Glad you could make it," Viktor shouted over the roar of the crowd. Flik looked up at the ships. He did not know much about naval craft, but these appeared to be merchantmen with one bank of oars and two masts. The crowd was rushing another ship, smaller, as it tried to pull away from the pier. People thrashed about in the water, gripped onto the oars, and tried to pull their way onboard the already crowded ship. Deckhands armed with clubs vigorously tried to force the interlopers off.

"Where are the others?" Flik asked.

"Already departed. By the way, you're going to have to abandon your horses." Viktor pointed to where the carts had been discarded, their horses long gone. "Hurry it up, I'm not sure how much longer we can hold off the crowd."

Flik glanced over at the carts, many of them still piled with supplies. He felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. "Did anybody manage to save my books?" he inquired.

Viktor laughed and then tossed the bookstrap, complete with the diaries, over to Flik. "Apple said you'd probably suffer a breakdown if these weren't safe. You can thank her later, but we need to go now."

Flik did not hesitate. "Men," he ordered, "gather your weapons, including the Fire Spears, and food. Only weapons, Fire Spears, and food. We'll board by squads." The men did so, unburdening the horses of their saddlebags and tack in the process. The animals huddled together, unsure as to what was going on, and spooked by the crowd. The squads formed up, men climbing up the gangplank with only the things that were specified.

Suddenly someone from the crowd clearly yelled, "The Highland Army has entered the city!" There was an audible groan from the throng and people started looking desperately at the remaining ships.

"Pick up the pace," Viktor warned encouragingly.

"Double time!" Flik yelled, and his sergeants followed suit.

There was little controlling the crowd now, and though they weren't quite ready to bodily throw themselves against Viktor's spears, they were surging closer and closer. One of the ships farther down the docks caught fire and began to burn, crew and passengers diving into the dark, murky water in an attempt to escape.

Rossgard led the last of Flik's men onto the galley, and Flik sprinted up the gangplank. It was pulled up even as his feet touched down on the deck. Viktor and his remaining men ran for the other galley, and the crowd hesitated only a moment before following. The ropes attaching Flik's ship to the pier were cut, and as the oars began to engage, it slowly drifted away from the wharf.

The galley Viktor had boarded was just a bit slower, and the crowd rushed up to the very brink of the pier, trying to leap aboard. But even this galley was already underway, and most of these desperate attempts failed, people falling short into the water or smashing themselves hard against the railing. Flik could see that a few were pulled up onto the deck, but most dropped into the murk. Still, even as these people failed, more crowded up, jostling the ones in front off balance and into the lake. They began thrashing about in the water, some trying to reach the shore and others continuing to chase the galleys.

None of them were strong enough to catch the merchantmen, and the captains were not about to turn their overburdened ships around. The docks of Coronet receded, allowing Flik to see the extent of the slums that spread around the port. Tiny little shacks dotted the waterfront and the slope leading up from the shore. Even here, insignificant fishing craft were darting out onto the water, some of them overfilled to the point of capsizing. However, what stood out were two men sitting out in front of one of the hovels.

Even in the failing light, Flik could see that one was wearing a long tan robe, and the other a long blue robe. They appeared to be doing nothing more than nonchalantly fishing, unconcerned about the disaster unfolding around them. The one in tan even stood up to wave. Flik squinted; he thought he recognized the man, though he wasn't close enough to be sure. On a whim, he waved back.

The wind picked up, a blast of cooler air out of the north. Flik looked towards the sky and saw a shift in the clouds. A line of much darker, deeper clouds was rushing out of the north, moisture already beginning to obscure the upper part of the town.

"Brace yourselves!" the captain shouted. Lightning flickered over the town, Flik glanced down at his right hand as the lightning rune seemed to stir. The wind abruptly howled in his ears, waves spraying over the railing, soaking and blinding him. The noise did not abate but only built in intensity, and he could see nothing. The galley lurched, and Flik stumbled, even as a momentary flash of light illumed everything. His soldiers cowered on the deck, some lying flat, others holding on to anything that was tied down.

Darkness returned, and with it, a driving, stinging rain. The ship lurched again, fighting its way through a wave. Flik banged his knee against the deck, struggling to stay upright. A fine sheet of water washed across the ship, spilling back into the lake. A flash and a loud crack announced a lightning strike into the lake itself. By that ephemeral brightness, Flik saw an ominous waterspout off to his left.

He tried to warn the captain, but couldn't even hear himself shouting over the angry water and screeching wind. Everything went black again, and the ship jostled violently between two swells. Flik lost his feet, falling back first onto the planking. A wave crashed over the railings, inundating him with water. He sat up and coughed it out of his mouth, tasting the slight salty tang, though not so salty as Lake Toran.

Lightning struck again, and Flik realized that he was feeling not fear, but a sort of giddy excitement. He would've laughed, but the galley canted in the opposite direction, and he had to fight for his balance again. Several more bolts flashed in succession, and he tried to locate the waterspout in their light. It was now out in front of them, moving away.

The storm continued at full ferocity for several minutes more, surging waves swamping the ship and slamming it against ridges of water. Then the worst of it was past, and the wind died back into a gentle breeze out of the north. It was still raining moderately and much cooler, but the galley did not appear to be in danger of capsizing. The captain paced up and down the deck, yelling orders at his deck hands and screaming abuse at any of the mercenaries who got in the way, including Flik. There was water to be pumped out of the bilge and damage to be accessed. For his part, Flik went around and tried to see if anyone had been swept overboard. There were, at least two had crashed through a railing, shattering it, and had disappearing into the churning water.

Eventually sailors went up the masts and readied the sails. The wind billowed the fabric and the galley was soon underway. After a while, Flik found an empty spot and, soaked though he was, collapsed into an exhausted sleep.


	20. Chapter 20 Preparing For War

**Chapter 20 – Preparing For War**

The early morning sunlight flashed off the surface of Lake Dunan, shining down out of a nearly clear sky. It was cool, with a steady north wind, which continued to propel the galley to the south. Flik stood by the aft railing scanning the churning waters of the lake. Another merchantman, he assumed it was the one Viktor was on, was about a mile to the rear. It appeared to have taken some damage in the storm, as one of its masts had a jury-rigged sail on it. The rest of the lake was clear; from horizon to horizon there didn't seem to be any more ships on the water.

Later in the morning, the southern shore of Dunan appeared over the horizon. The sails were furled and the galley proceeded towards Kuskus under oars.

The captain began pacing again, muttering, "Why don't they have a pilot boat out? Do they want us to fetch up against some rocks?" With brisk orders, he set some of his men to taking depth readings as well as they could.

Flik glanced off to the port side of the galley; in the distance he could see water foaming off of an exposed reef. Still, the two ships managed to come up against adjacent quays without any mishap. As the mercenaries disembarked, Flik looked around for any port officials. Disturbingly, he didn't find any. There were some burly dockhands, who immediately set about trading news with some of his men.

"What's up?" one of the workers said. "You two are the first ships from Coronet we've seen all day. By this time on a regular day, we'd expect at least a dozen this size. The dock gangs are getting antsy about having no work."

"Might be some time before you see many ships out of there," one of Flik's mercenaries answered. "Coronet got all tore up by Highland troops."

"You don't say," another worker jumped in. "I've got cousins in Coronet. Say, you think Highland will be coming this way?"

"Who knows?" the mercenary remarked. "We were running like all hell was behind us. Good thing we did, I don't think anything can stand against them."

"That's enough of that," Flik shouted, striding towards the conversation. "We don't have any work for you," he told the longshoremen. "So get out of here. As for the rest of you." He glared at his men. "There will be no gossiping unless I specifically allow it. We're warriors, not a bunch of gabby old ladies."

The mercenaries colored but also stopped talking, though Flik was sure that he'd earned a few muttered curses. Unfortunately, even that one moment of gossip had an effect. As Viktor and Flik marched their men through the docks and the town, he could see the citizens milling about, talking in hushed tones and casting wary glances at the soldiers. Even though there were goods piled up in boxes along the wharves, nobody seemed to care to get them to the markets, and many of the shops didn't even appear to be open.

As they marched south out of the town, Flik jogged up to the head of the column, where he found Viktor. "So, how much potch do we have?" he inquired.

"Let's see." Viktor fumbled around in one of his pockets. "I've got three hundred and fifty…two. How about you?"

Flik didn't answer. Instead he asked, "What's the plan? Once the men figure out that they're going to have to take their pay in promises, we're not going to have much of an army."

"No problem. Granmeyer knows our reputation; he'll take us on."

Flik almost asked, "What? Our reputation for losing battles and retreating?" But he decided to keep his mouth shut.

Viktor was still speaking. "After that, I'll try to figure out where Anabelle is. There are really only two places she'd go: here or Greenhill. Wherever she is, that's where I'll be."

"And if she's dead?" Flik blurted out. He looked at Viktor to gauge his reaction.

Viktor did not respond for a while, but seemed to be chewing the thought over. Warily, he replied, "If she's dead, then she's dead. It…is part of the territory. I'll continue fighting until we kick the Highland Army out of Jowston. But I'm not going to believe she's dead until I hear it from somebody who saw her die."

Flik nodded. After all, he hadn't really believed Odessa was dead until he'd heard it from Tir McDohl.

All of that day was taken up marching down the dirt road leading towards South Window. The terrain was drier than in Muse, with short grasses and stunted trees predominating. There were also fewer small farms dotting the countryside. Most of the houses that were visible along the road were great manors where people worked harvesting olives, dates, figs, and grapes. After a few hours, Flik's legs began to regret that he'd left his horse behind in Coronet. His cavalrymen also looked out of marching shape.

Luckily, Viktor gave them plenty of unscheduled opportunities to rest. Throughout the day, he stopped to speak with every person on the road and even went haring off after people he saw in the wilderness. He always said, "If you come across any members of Viktor's Mercenary Army, tell them to come to South Window City."

There weren't a huge number of travelers though. One group was a long merchant caravan working its way north to pick up more goods. Another group turned out to be refugees from Muse who'd been lucky enough to catch a boat. From these people, Flik learned that the great majority of the ships had been blown off course and were dropping people off at the first good beach they could find.

With all of the talking that Viktor did, they did not get to South Window before sundown. Instead, they camped out in a field beside the road. Luckily, the weather was warm and dry, so the lack of tents did not discomfort anyone. There was also enough food for that night, though not much was left. Flik knew they'd have to get more supplies, and quickly.

After he ate, he was about to lie down on the turf and try for some sleep, but he suddenly noticed Viktor walking off into one of the fields. Concerned, Flik got up and quietly followed after his friend. Viktor continued to walk in a straight line, as if he had some premeditated destination in mind. Eventually, he walked up a small rise and sat down at the top. Flik remained at the base of the hill, not wanting to intrude.

"I should've gone after her," Viktor spoke to himself. "I should've been there to protect her…or at least to be with her." He paused and whispered, "I can't bear to think that she was alone when she…"

He did not continue that thought. Flik wondered if he ought to sneak away, but suddenly had the sensation of needing to sneeze. He held it in, covering his nose with both hands and shuffling his feet in dizziness. Shaking his head, he looked back up at the top of the hill.

After some time, Viktor said, a little too casually, "You think we can win this war, Flik?"

Flik carefully picked his way up the slope until he stood on the crown of the hill next to Viktor. Flik did not speak for a long moment, finally responding, "I'm sorry for intruding, Viktor."

"Nah," Viktor interjected, still too conversationally. "I was just thinking about how badly we're getting beat. That's all."

Flik could see that Viktor was not prepared to talk about how Anabelle's death hurt him personally. It would be easier for him to talk about how it changed less important things, like the war.

"You seemed confident earlier today," Flik said.

"I was, but…what if Anabelle…is dead? What then?"

Flik looked down at Viktor. "You think she is?" Viktor did not answer but continued to look out over the grasslands. Flik considered his next words. "Even so, don't we keep fighting? You said you'd continue until Highland was driven out. That's what she would want, right?"

Viktor grabbed a pebble and tossed it out into the still night air. "I just wonder if the Alliance has anybody to match Luca Blight. Without Anabelle, I don't know if anyone can lead Jowston to victory."

"Well, what about Granmeyer? Or maybe the leader of the Matilda Knights? Gorudo, I think his name was."

Viktor emphatically shook his head. "No, neither of them has the prestige. Anabelle was known throughout Jowston. She sent troops to aid both the Knights and Tinto. She donated funds for Greenhill, even helped to avert conflict between South Window and Two Rivers. She really did have the best interests of all of Jowston at heart, and everybody knew it. I don't think any of the potential successors would have that reputation; they're all tied too closely with their individual cities."

Flik sat down, feeling the residual heat of the day rising out of the earth. "What about you, then? Couldn't you take up Anabelle's mantle?"

Viktor chortled. "No, not I. Not at all. It's kind of like when Odessa died and the Liberation Army was leaderless. You were aiming for that job, right?"

Flik looked up at the stars. "I guess I was," he conceded.

"No offense, but you would've been terrible."

"What?" Flik glanced sharply over just in time to catch Viktor's smile at his reaction.

"You didn't have the right temperament. Who would you have listened to? Not Mathiu, that's for sure. You'd have alienated most of the members and then gone off half-cocked and tried to take Gregminster all by yourself."

Momentarily Flik searched for some sort of snappy counter argument, but ended up chuckling once. "You are absolutely right. I would've messed everything up. I guess we were just lucky that Tir McDohl showed up."

Viktor pounded his fist into his palm. "That's what we need."

"Tir McDohl?"

"Not him, but somebody like him. Someone who has the right lineage, but who's humble enough to listen and take advice. Someone who draws people to him naturally, and not because he's a braggart."

Both men were silent for a time. "That's a tall order," Flik suggested.

"Yes it is."

There was silence again.

"I need a beer," Viktor commented. "Out of the biggest tub they can find."

"I entirely agree."

Viktor's Mercenary Army arrived outside the gates of South Window just before noon. The city sat at the intersection of three broad dusty roads, one from the west, one from the east, and the one that the mercenaries were marching down. It was an old city, whose long, tall walls were showing signs of disrepair.

Flik frowned. South Window certainly didn't seem like a city preparing for war. The main gates stood wide open and unguarded. There wasn't even a token pair of soldiers for the appearance of vigilance. Not only that, but the arrival of a group of armed men outside the walls didn't elicit the slightest official response from within.

"What now?" Flik asked Viktor.

"We go in, march through the city, and knock politely on the mayor's door. I'm sure somebody will notice us."

They marched in. Just beyond the gates was a working class neighborhood, a maze of twisting streets bordered by small shops and multi-story buildings. There were people going to and from their daily chores here, but they stopped to gawk as the mercenaries passed. Then they began to clear the street, ducking hurriedly into their houses, slamming the doors behind them. After a while, Flik found that they were walking down a completely empty road. This continued until they got onto a straight, broad street heading towards an interior wall with an arched tunnel in it. Viktor explained that it was part of the defense system. These interior walls crisscrossed the city, allowing soldiers to move from section to section above the city streets.

It was just after they'd crossed out of the shadow of the tunnel that they met the first challenge. A group of twenty soldiers stood at an intersection, listening to the words of a panicked resident.

"I tell you, they're really here! A group of Highland soldiers has entered the city." The resident glanced back towards Viktor and Flik. "Look! There they are. Do something!"

The South Window soldiers looked warily towards the mercenaries. Viktor confidently stepped forward and boomed, "We are not Highland soldiers but Viktor's Mercenary Army. We're here to enlist in the defense of this city."

Flik scanned the street. Nobody seemed terribly pleased by Viktor's announcement. Rather, most of them look like they'd just figured out that the war was real and getting closer, and they didn't appear to be very happy at the discovery.

One of the sergeants with the South Window soldiers walked towards Viktor and Flik. The sergeant was a stringy man with ill-fitting armor and a handlebar moustache. "You folks…ah…should come with me. We wouldn't want you causing a…panic." He blinked, nervously perusing the mercenaries. "I'll send a messenger off to the mayoral palace."

Viktor rolled his eyes. "Fine. Lead the way."

The sergeant did, though he did not look terribly pleased to be escorting two hundred armed men through the streets. He led them to a barracks that was flush against the western wall.

"These…ah…can serve as your quarters. At least until some more…permanent arrangements can be made." The sergeant bowed shallowly and scampered before either Viktor or Flik could speak.

Somehow it did not surprise Flik that when he opened the door, he found the interior of the building to be a dusty wreck. Still, even this was better than trying a night out on the streets. They set the men to getting the place in order. The dust was swept up, a few beds were found, and there were even some old, dried foodstuffs in one of the storage closets in the back. The men were hungry enough that nobody complained, even if the meat did have the consistency of tree bark and was salted to within an inch of its life.

Late in the evening with the sun just set, a response came from the mayoral palace. The messenger, a man with oiled hair and a purple doublet, delivered a sealed document into Viktor's hands. Then he sniffed disdainfully, spun about, and departed.

"What's the news?" Flik asked, after Viktor finished reading it.

Viktor scratched his scalp. "From what I can make of it, Mayor Granmeyer wants to meet with us two hours after noon."

"That's good, right?"

"It means we'll get paid, but I worry about the urgency of the document." Viktor handed it over to Flik.

"How so?" Flik asked.

"Well, when we first came to Muse City, they left us cooling our heels for half a month, even though we had the direct support of Anabelle. Granmeyer must be pretty desperate if he's going to see us tomorrow."

"We'll learn what more at the meeting," Flik replied. "You never know, things might be completely different by tomorrow."

It was dark and he could see nothing. He felt rock beneath his feet and a smothering heat all around him. At the periphery of his vision, a dull red light blossomed. He watched, entranced, as it intensified, slowly revealing a horrific landscape.

He stood on a rock in the midst of a searing lake of fire and lava, clutching the shaft of a Fire Spear. The hot blasts of air blistered his exposed skin, but the meager platform was surely thousands of times better than the inferno. Twisted and blackened figures struggled in the lava. Despite the fact some thinking part of his mind rejected what he saw as impossible, still he recoiled as the figures shambled towards him.

As they came closer, he began to recognize faces, disfigured with pain though they were. Here again were the two children on the road to Coronet. There were soldiers that he'd killed: Highlanders and Imperial soldiers from the old Scarlet Moon Empire. More faces in the crowd belonged to soldiers who died under his command. There was the senior sergeant Chester, who, during the march away from the fort, had stopped to rest against a rock and never returned to the land of the living. Even in death, his face was horribly ripped open.

The horde parted to allow their leader forward. Flik cringed in pain. Even in death, she was still beautiful. The updrafts caught her auburn hair, billowing it up around her head like a tribute to the flames. The light from the fires reflected off her flawless skin in a red glare, giving her a feverish look. It shined in her eyes, a mockery of the spark of life. There was a little smile on her face as she reached towards him with both arms.

_Odessa!_ Her hands were fiery pain as they touched him, pulling him down. Of their own accord, his hands moved along the Fire Spear, bringing it into a ready position. _No!_ Yet even as much as he wanted to be drawn down by her, his body resisted, feet digging in on the edge of the platform. She pulled herself up towards him, hands smoldering at his cheeks, drawing up to kiss him.

Flames exploded out of the Fire Spear, enveloping, consuming, expanding out to overcome all of the masses behind her. He could still feel her hands on his cheeks, and then her face rose up out of the fire, her lips brushing against his momentarily.

Flik gasped awake, sitting up in pitch black, his fingers reaching to touch his lips. They tingled, the sensation fading even as he felt it. The dark room was uncomfortably hot, with men sleeping wherever they could. He could hear Viktor's loud snores from a couple of beds down. Flik reached out with his right hand, finding the sword that he had named for his love. He slid out of his bed, standing on the cool, stone floor, the sword gripped in his hand. On tiptoes, he crept across the room to the door, pulled it open just a bit, and slipped out into the night air.

It was lighter outside than in the barracks. The Blue Moon, a waxing crescent, was up in the east. The Scarlet Moon was not yet visible over the walls, but would be soon enough. Morning would follow thereafter. Flik slowly breathed in the warm, dry air, letting the memory of the dream be carried away into the night. Still, it would be some time before he was able to close his eyes again that night.

The following morning Viktor departed to see if he couldn't learn if any of the missing mercenaries had arrived during the night. Flik, after overseeing the rest of the cleanup in the barracks, went out scouting for an inn for the women to stay at, whenever they managed to return. He found one built into one of the interior walls, right by the main street. The sign over the door announced it as "The Monarch's Crown."

There didn't appear to be any bouncers at the door, so Flik opened it up and walked in. The interior was quiet and peaceful, with a dinning room off to one side and stairs leading up at the end of a short hallway. A maid was busy cleaning the tables, and looked up when Flik came in.

"Are you looking for the innkeeper?" she asked. "Just stay here, I'll go get him."

She returned after a few moments with a large man with thinning gray hair. Flik momentarily wondered why all innkeepers seemed to be overweight. Then the man addressed him. "Good morning, good morning, sir. How may 'The Monarch's Crown' be of service to you this fine day? Perhaps you are looking to rent a room for a while? Yes?"

"Actually, I was hoping that you have several rooms available," Flik explained. "I'm a captain for a mercenary group, and we're looking for a place for our noncombatants to stay while we're in South Window."

"You don't say?" The innkeeper managed to look both skeptical and avaricious at the same time, rubbing his hands together vigorously. "Well, sir, may I remind you that 'The Monarch's Crown' is a high class establishment, and I'll need to see a substantial down payment before I'll let any of the rooms." He licked his lips hungrily.

Flik maintained his polite tone. "Let's not talk about money just yet. Maybe you could show me around the place?"

The innkeeper's smile vanished, his jowls dropping into a slight frown. However, before he could say anything, Viktor burst through the door, yelling, "You'll never believe who I just met!"

Riou, Nanami, and Pilika walked in just behind Viktor, nervously looking around the inn. Flik smiled. "Good work getting here, Riou. You too, Nanami and Pilika. I know you must have been through a lot."

He might have said more, but three other travelers entered the inn. Though they came in last, they were clearly a part of the group. Two of them were sisters, judging by their similar black hair and facial structure, though they did not appear to be twins. The one with the longer hair, hoop earrings, black dress, and green wrap tied around her waist appeared to be slightly older. The younger girl had short hair with bangs that framed her eyes. She was wearing long dangling earrings, black shorts, and a black cropped top with netting across her shoulders. She had a red wrap around her waist. The third person was a mountain of a man, who had a surprisingly gentle face and a tuft of brown hair on his forehead. He was wearing a pair of blue trousers that were held in place by two chains that crossed over his bare chest. He also had a large brown blanket, which he seemed to be using as a travelling cloak.

"Are these…people with you?" The innkeeper sniffed.

"We've got lots to talk about," Viktor said jovially.

"If you want to talk," the innkeeper replied. "You'll either have to pay or get out."

"How much?" Flik asked.

"For the lot of you…five hundred potch!" The innkeeper demanded. Flik checked his pockets, he didn't have that much. He was sure Viktor didn't either. The innkeeper sneered triumphantly. At least, until Riou stepped forward and handed him a string of coins. "Well, fine," he answered, not at all happily. "You!" He pointed at the maid. "Show our guests to a table." He bustled out of the dinning room as quickly as he was able.

There were ten tables in the dinning room. The maid led them to one with a window behind it. Riou took the middle seat by the window, and Nanami sat down to his right. The girl with the red wrap emphatically took the seat to Riou's left. The gentle giant eased uncomfortably into a chair at the side of the table. Pilika sat down next to the giant, in the first chair facing the window. Flik immediately took the middle chair on that side and turned to see the woman with the green wrap sitting down on his right side. She smiled when she saw him looking. Viktor, the only one still standing, took the seat directly across from the giant.

Servers came by with a meal of seafood dumplings with sweet and sour sauce, served on a bed of rice and fried vegetables. A mild sweet tea was also served.

"Well," Flik began. "Tell us about how you got here. You seem to have made some new friends."

"Ho ho ho," the girl in the black dress chuckled. "Friends indeed."

"Hey!" her sister snapped, but she did edge slightly towards Riou.

Nanami, unaware of the by-play, told the story. "We went to Anabelle's like we were going to. When we arrived, Jowy was there, and he had-"

She paused, her cheerfulness breaking down. "There was a bloody dagger in his hand, and Anabelle was on the floor, bleeding."

"Wait," Flik interrupted. He could hear the disbelief in his own voice. "You mean Jowy killed Anabelle? He always said that he hated Highland, that he wouldn't forgive them for framing him. Why would he turn to them now?" The thought crossed his mind that Sanchez had managed a similar ruse. Flik shook his head; he couldn't see Jowy as the type to hide his true feelings for any length of time.

Viktor's face was set, but his voice was menacing. "I'll want to hear his reasons before I settle with him. I want to know why he did it. Then I'll decide if I want to kill him, or just maim him very badly." Riou, naturally enough, didn't look terribly comfortable with this subject. Viktor, noticing this, continued, "I don't blame you, though. You're obviously as shocked about this as I am."

"Why don't you continue, Nanami?" Flik prompted.

"Yes." Nanami didn't look happy, either. "Jowy ducked out through the back, while we tried to save Anabelle. Then we heard that Highland was attacking, so we returned to the inn. We got Pilika, and Leona told us to go to South Window. There were a lot of people trying to get out of Muse, and we got all mixed up and had to spend the night out in a field. After that, it took us a while to figure out where we were going." She paused, noticed that the dumplings were going quickly, and speared one for herself. "We got to Coronet, but the Highland Army was already there, and they weren't allowing anybody to go out on the water. That's where we met Rina, Eilie, and Bolgan."

"I'm Rina," the girl in the dress said. "That's my sister, Eilie." She gestured towards the girl sitting next to Riou.

"I can introduce myself!" Eilie retorted.

"Me Bolgan!" the giant proclaimed, to his great satisfaction.

"Riou's helped us twice now," Rina said. "So we're kind of indebted to him. Besides, my sister's got the-"

"No!" Eilie shrieked, throwing a dumpling in the direction of her sister. Rina, in a display of dexterity, snatched it out of the air. "You're terrible," Eilie pouted. "Don't say another word."

Rina chuckled and calmly took a sip from her teacup. "I think you can continue, Nanami."

Nanami nodded. "Well, we finally found some crusty old men who were willing to take their boat out and that's how we got across the lake. We just got here this morning, and we found Viktor by the gate."

"Yup," Viktor added. "We've got quite a story too. We had to fight our way down to Coronet, then ride out a storm, and we just got here yesterday."

"It would've been sooner if somebody hadn't been so busy making side trips." Flik explained.

"We need to get the word out that Viktor's Mercenary Army is gathering in South Window," Viktor answered. "It's got to be by word of mouth. How else are we going to do it?"

"So you're mercenaries?" Rina asked, looking at Flik.

Nanami spoke up before Flik could reply. "Does that mean Leona and the others aren't here?"

"You're right about that," Viktor said. "We got all split up in the storm. We got here first, and now you've arrived."

Nanami looked crestfallen. "I wonder if anyone thought to save my Ritapon set?"

"They'll get here," Flik consoled. "Before you know it, we'll all be gathered again."

"I hope they're all okay," Nanami responded.

"Me too," Flik echoed. He reached out for another dumpling and found that they were all gone. Even as he looked, Bolgan was dabbing up the last few grains of rice with his meaty thumb.

"That's enough of that," Viktor said, ending that subject. "It's just about time for us to leave for the mayor's palace. Who wants to come along?"

"So, you're hoping to get a contract off the mayor?" Rina asked.

"I'm not about to stop going around trying to gather everybody here," Viktor answered. "When they get here, we're going to need a place to keep them, and that takes potch. The mayor's got a fair bit, supposedly, and he needs men to fight for him."

"I'm going," Nanami announced, waving her arms. "Riou, you're coming too," she declared.

"Yes," Riou answered. "I still want to stop Highland."

Rina took another sip of her drink. "I think I'll stay here and enjoy my tea. It's been a while since I've had a chance to relax."

Eilie glanced at Riou, blushed, and said, "I'm not good in formal situations. I'd just trip over myself or something. I'll stay here and look after Pilika."

Bolgan nodded. "Be back soon."

The four that were going -Viktor, Flik, Riou, and Nanami- stood up and walked towards the inn's entrance.

"The mayoral palace is in the northeastern quarter of the city," Flik explained. "It'll take us a little while to walk there, and then we'll see about getting a new contract."


	21. Chapter 21 In Your Service

**Chapter 21 – In Your Service**

Flik found the walk through the city to be unsettling. Unlike Muse, which bustled even during the threat of war, South Window was very subdued. The offices and warehouses of the great factors in the middle of the city were entirely deserted. The people that were out on the street seemed to be just wandering around. Flik watched one old man who did nothing but talk to and water his bonsai for five straight minutes. He was certain all the man had accomplished was to drown his plant.

Farther to the north and east was the old town, the first part of South Window to be inhabited. None of the original buildings still stood, this quarter of the city having been built over several times. Now it was the domain of the wealthy, with large houses and tree-lined lanes predominating. The mayoral palace, built on a series of terraces, loomed over the neighborhood.

In the midst of the old town was a large standing stone carved with the names of the legendary founders of the city. As Flik approached he could see that a modest crowd of children had gathered around the stone. However, it was not the stone that interested them, but the gigantic, bald man who stood beside it.

He was huge, bigger than Viktor, Rikimaru, or even Bolgan. He was dressed in the purple robes of a monk, though those robes were far too short for his height. A set of massive green beads encircled his neck, and there seemed to be some sort of growth just above his eyes.

He had been laughing, bantering casually with the kids, but he suddenly turned towards Flik and the others. "Strength alone will not save you," he gravely declared.

Viktor took a few steps towards the giant monk. "What do you mean by that?" he asked.

The giant monk smiled. "I mean what I mean. Those who live by strength will fall before greater strength. There is always a greater strength. Will you pit your strength against mine, so that you might learn?"

Viktor rolled up his sleeves. "I'll take you on right now."

Flik put his hand on Viktor's shoulder. "We don't have time for this. We've got an appointment to keep, remember?"

Now the monk met Flik's gaze. It was hard not to back away. "Strength will not bring you peace," he said. "Strength will not save those that you care for."

Those words hit Flik as hard as any blows. He found himself gasping for breath. The monk, meanwhile, fixed his eyes on Nanami and Riou. Nanami jumped forward to protect her brother. The monk chuckled at this display. "Your strength is just a veneer hiding your weakness. One piercing strike will lay you bare. True strength comes from embracing your weaknesses. Be careful, or your blindness will lead to someone's demise."

Nanami turned away, sinking down to her knees. Riou got down on his to check his sister. Viktor growled, "That's enough of that, monk."

"Silence!" the giant monk commanded, voice loud enough to send nearby birds into flight. Incredibly, Viktor obeyed. The monk continued. "I am not quite done here. You," he spoke to Riou in a much gentler tone. "Your strength will shatter nations, but it will also shatter those closest to your heart. Even your strength will not give you all that you desire. Some things must be done from weakness. Remember that."

"You there!" A couple of soldiers were running down the street, from the direction of the mayoral palace. "You, monk, stop bothering the residents."

The monk did not even look at the soldiers. Instead, he bent down and retrieved a walking staff the width of Flik's palm. The monk smiled at Riou. "We shall speak more on this subject later. Gather your strength, for the trial approaches." Then he set off down the street at an easy walk. He disappeared around the first corner he came to.

The soldiers halted by the standing stone. "That monk bothering you folks?" the commander of the patrol asked.

"Damn right," Viktor replied. "He just started lecturing us in the middle of the street. Telling us about how our strength wasn't enough. Made me so angry that I wanted to punch him right on his nose."

The commander laughed. "Yeah, he's been doing that a lot; spreading doom and gloom. He says he's a monk from Qlon, the local monks tell us he's been excommunicated. They say his name's Gantetsu, but nobody has been able to catch him yet. He always seems to vanish into thin air when we try a chase him down."

Flik looked at Nanami as Riou helped her back to her feet. "Well, he's gone now," Flik declared. He continued to study the worried expressions on the siblings' faces. "They're just words," he said, trying to comfort them. "Don't worry about what he said."

"Let's just go," Viktor groused, rolling his sleeves back down.

After a quarter hour of walking, they arrived at the stairs leading up to the mayoral palace. The building was a long, low structure with a gracefully sloped golden roof and a columned front. It sat atop a terraced slope with two levels of walls protecting it.

An official at the first gate looked at their papers and ushered them in. In between the walls were manicured gardens. However, the gardens seemed to be overrun with squatters. When Flik asked about this, the official answered, "Lord Granmeyer has graciously permitted refugees from Ryube, Toto, and Muse City to stay on the palace grounds until more permanent residences can be found for them." Flik looked again, noting the officials moving through the crowds, handing out food.

They entered the palace, walking down a long hallway. Pausing by a pair of sliding wooden doors at the far end, the official said, "You are expected, please enter. Remember to be respectful to his lordship." Then the official pulled the doors open.

Viktor went in first, followed by Flik. Riou and Nanami hung back a couple of paces, taking the room in. The office was sparse, with two lit braziers in the back, and a small tea stand against that same wall. The floor was tiled in red stone with a geometric pattern that led to a serpentine dragon at the very center.

"You are to be commended in surviving such a disaster, Viktor," Granmeyer said. He was standing by the tea set, arms folded behind his back. He was wearing his khaki coat and pants, but not his blue half-cape. Even so, he did not look very comfortable in the spring heat. Behind him and to the right, was another man, Granmeyer's aide. This man had black hair and glasses. He was wearing brown boots, white pants, and a blue and white coat. A sword was strapped over his right shoulder and back.

Viktor smiled. "I'm glad to see you're well, Lord Granmeyer."

Granmeyer motioned for them to sit down on some futons. Servants appeared from one of the doors in the back, carefully setting down a low table. The aide came around and poured tea for everyone. Flik noted that the aide seemed to have a very self-effacing manner. He didn't even pour tea for himself until Granmeyer asked him to.

Despite the casual setting, Granmeyer did not linger over pleasantries at all. Instead, he declared, "Muse has fallen to Luca Blight and Highland. I fear that this peril is marching for South Window even as we speak. Viktor, your reputation as a defender of the Jowston Alliance is well known, especially in this city. I would be honored to have your services in the defense of the province."

Viktor bowed slightly in his seated position. The formality seemed a bit odd to Flik, but then he remembered that this was Viktor's home province. He would take things seriously here. "My lord," Viktor said. "I'd be proud to help. However, my forces are scattered at the moment, and we sorely lack money. Still, I will do all that is in my power to help you."

"South Window will offer you all the aid you need in rebuilding your mercenaries. I'm counting on you, Viktor." Granmeyer paused to sip at his tea. Setting down the cup, he asked, "By the way, if I remember correctly your hometown is North Window, isn't it?"

Viktor suddenly looked very uncomfortable, his teacup poised at the edge of his mouth. "Yes…it is," he answered. He seemed to be ready to say more but held his tongue.

Granmeyer motioned his assistant forward. "Freed, would you explain the North Window situation?" Viktor frowned even more deeply at those words.

Freed stood up, bowed stiffly, and said, "Yes. Recently there has been a string of kidnappings involving young girls. They've all occurred in the vicinity of North Window. Troops were dispatched to investigate, and they report some sort of monster is living there. That's all the information we have."

Granmeyer held up a hand. "The rumors have been spreading throughout the province. Even though the incidents are very localized, every town wants soldiers stationed to protect their women from the menace. I cannot mobilize the army against Highland until someone goes in and removes the monster." Granmeyer paused to sip again. Flik looked over at Viktor, who appeared to know what the mayor was going to ask. "Viktor," Granmeyer spoke, "you know North Window better than anyone living today. I understand the pain you must feel, but I need you to go there and rid us of this threat. Only then will I be able to gather the army and stop Luca Blight."

Viktor did not answer immediately. He looked over at Flik, awaiting some reaction. Flik shrugged his shoulders. He couldn't speak for his friend on this one. Viktor turned back to speak to Granmeyer. "Well…yeah, I guess we can do that."

Granmeyer wiped his brow. "Good. My assistant Freed will be joining you. He knows the details of the situation and he's a capable fighter if the need arises. Please find out what's happening up there."

Freed bowed again. "Yes. I am Freed Yamamoto. I want to thank you for agreeing to help us in this matter. It is an honor to be in your service."

Viktor still didn't look too happy about the situation. "Yeah…ahh…okay," he said noncommittally. Freed didn't appear to take any umbrage at Viktor's lack of enthusiasm.

"I will send one of the clerks over with your first payment," Granmeyer said. "I wish you luck in this investigation." He bowed slightly in his seat.

Viktor and Flik bowed in response and got up. Riou and Nanami were also on their feet. Freed followed as they all walked out of Granmeyer's office.

Just outside the door, Nanami turned to Viktor and said, "I don't understand. Why is returning to your hometown so difficult?"

Viktor shook his head. "You'd have to see it to understand. I don't really want to talk about it now, let's just head back." Nanami looked disappointed not to have a more detailed explanation but didn't say anything else.

The walk back to the inn was mostly silent. Viktor seemed to be brooding. Riou and Nanami were also silent, catching the general mood. Freed nervously rubbed his palms together and tried to point out landmarks and street names along the way, but Flik only listened halfheartedly.

It was late in the afternoon when they finally got back to the inn. In one corner of the dinning room, Bolgan was balancing a tower of plates and glasses on one foot. Pilika, sitting on the top of a table, was watching him with interest. Rina and Eilie were still at the table by the window, in the midst of an intense conversation.

"Why are you always telling me to be careful?" Eilie hissed. "You're the one practically throwing yourself at the feet of every man we meet."

Rina averted her eyes from her sister's glare, looking out the window. "I'm only trying to protect you, sis," she answered softly. "Someday, when you understand, you'll thank me."

"Protect me?" Eilie retorted. "From what? Nobody even notices me, the way you go on all the time."

Rina suddenly turned back to look at Eilie, causing her to shrink back a little. "You're absolutely wrong," she said sternly. "You may be one year younger, but you don't have half my experience with men."

"As if I'd want half your experience with men," Eilie interrupted.

Rina banged her hand down on the table. "Just listen to me for once! You're just the sort of naïve waif that most men would use up and throw away without a second thought."

"I am not naïve," Eilie shouted.

Viktor walked towards the table. "What's up, ladies?"

The two sisters suddenly noted the presence of the others and shot Viktor a look that made him back up a pace. "We'll continue this discussion later," Rina whispered harshly. Then she looked back at Viktor and pleasantly asked, "So, how'd things go?"

It only took Viktor a moment to recover. "Well, he's going to pay for our upkeep, but," Viktor sat down in his spot at the end of the table, "he's given us a little chore to do."

Flik sat down in the middle spot, just as before. Nanami and Riou sat down on either side of him. The two sisters were sitting together, on the side against the window. Freed sat down in the empty chair on that side, next to Rina.

She smiled at Freed in an interested manner. "You're new, who are you?" Eilie frowned behind her sister's back.

Freed hesitated a moment and bowed his head. "Yes, of course, I'm sorry. I am Lord Granmeyer's personal aide, Freed Yamamoto. He has ordered me to accompany your party to North Window. I hope I may be of service."

Rina chuckled and turned away, looking slightly down at the table. "You're a polite one, aren't you. Men should be polite; it's an attractive quality."

Flik blinked; she seemed to have been trying to catch his eyes during that last remark. Freed turned red like a beet. "I…ah…I'm certain my wife thinks so, as well."

Viktor cleared his throat. "Yeah, I'm sure that's true. Anyway, I've got to go to North Window. Who wants to come with me? What about you, Riou?"

Riou nodded somberly. Nanami practically bounced in her seat. "I'm coming! I want to see what North Window's like."

Eilie smiled over at Riou, caught herself, and looked aside. "I'm interested too."

Rina's eyebrows knitted in frustration. Then she relaxed and waved her hand in a dismissive way. "Of course, dear. Do what you think is best. I think I'll stay here. I don't fancy all that walking when we've just managed to settle down. Besides, somebody's got to watch the kid."

Pilika and Bolgan, at the other side of the room, turned towards the conversation. In Bolgan's case, he did this while still managing to balance his tower of plates and glasses. "That's fine," he declared calmly. "I'll teach Pilika how to balance stuff."

Viktor stood up. "Let's get this started."

"Right now?" Freed asked. He looked at the evening light filtering in through the window.

Viktor frowned. "I don't wish to delay this one second more than I have to. I want this over and done with as soon as possible."

That was enough to squelch all opposing arguments. Nanami, Riou, Eilie, and Freed got up and joined Viktor. Flik also stood. "Well, we'll be back soon," he said, nodding towards Rina.

She smiled back, more broadly than she had for Freed. "Why don't you stay here?" she suggested. "It isn't very polite for a man to leave a lady all alone. Besides, I'd get bored without somebody to speak with. We could have some tea and talk about…things." Somehow she simultaneously managed to look down at the table and up through her batted eyelashes at him.

Flik could think of several good reasons why he didn't want to stay. It was just that his mouth wouldn't say them. "Uh…me? I really don't think I…I mean…I've…got…someone…important." His voice gave up.

Viktor slapped him on the back. "We need somebody here to coordinate with Granmeyer anyway. I think you'd be just the right man for the situation here."

"There are plenty of other good men," Flik stammered. "I don't see why I have to stay behind."

Rina's lower lip trembled. "You don't…want to talk with me? You're such a cold man." Flik heard someone sigh long-sufferingly. He was certain it was Eilie.

"No," Flik shook his head. "I mean-"

He couldn't bring himself to say, "Yes, I don't want to talk with you." Instead, he blathered, "That's not it at all."

Rina beamed again. "So you will stay with me?"

Viktor laughed. "Right, Flik. I'm counting on you to hold down the fort while I'm gone. And don't burn up the inn while we're away, you two."

"We shall depart," Freed announced. The five who were going walked towards the exit of the room. "As I'm sure you are aware, North Window is to the northwest," Freed remarked.

"Yeah," Viktor answered without enthusiasm. "Funny, I don't think you need me on this mission at all." Then they were gone.

Somehow Rina was suddenly by his Flik's side, leading him by the hand back to the table. She guided him into the seat next to her and then poured drinks. "So, are you really Flik of the Blue Lightning?" she asked.

Flik filed through his memories, trying to figure out how to handle this. _Okay, this is just like the situation with Kimberly. How did I deal with that? Let's see, I kept pouring her drinks and then she passed out and that was that._ Flik looked down at his cup. _Drat! This is tea; that's not going to work. Now what?_

He knew Rina was expecting some sort of answer. "I guess that's what they call me," he replied. "I didn't really come up with the name myself."

Rina took a sip of tea and smiled warmly. "Don't be shy. I want to hear all about your adventures. Were you really at Gregminster Castle, like the play "Imperial Love" says?

Flik gaped. "Wait, there's a play about that?"

"Yeah, a theater troupe was performing it in Harmonia last year. We traveled with them for a while, so I got to see it nearly every day."

"Oh." Flik reached for his cup of tea. "I didn't know those events had been recorded. Who wrote it?" He started to sip his tea.

"They say it was based on a book by Milich Oppenheimer, the Flower General."

Flik nearly spat his tea back up but managed to swallow. "Oh. Milich. He was in the Liberation Army but he wasn't with us in the Hanging Gardens when we faced Barbarossa."

Rina giggled. "Enough about that; I didn't want to hear about Milich anyway." She looked directly at Flik. "I want to hear about you."

Flik swallowed again. "I…there's not really much to say about that. Barbarossa called the incarnation of the Sovereign Rune -a golden, three-headed hydra- and we vanquished it. Tir McDohl did most of the work with the Soul Eater. All I really managed to do was take an arrow in the leg." Flik laughed weakly. "Viktor had to carry me out through a secret passage in the back."

"Hmm." They both sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally Rina said, "Now it's your turn. Ask me a question."

"What?"

"You're supposed to be making conversation with me," Rina declared. "So, it's not polite to make the lady do all the work."

"Oh." Flik felt the blush creeping onto his cheeks. "Uh…how did you become travelling performers? Do you like it?"

Rina's smile faded, and she looked away, down at the table. Flik was about to broach a different subject, but she answered, "We were born in the Grasslands, north beyond Tinto. I learned my card skills from our mother, and Eilie learned her dagger skills from our father. But they were killed by bandits when we were very young. We became performers out of necessity and eventually we joined a traveling circus. We spent many years there; it's also where we met Bolgan. I suppose we would've continued there, but," she paused and sighed heavily. "Well…the ringmaster began to develop an unhealthy interest in Eilie. I couldn't permit that…I didn't want her to have to suffer that particular indignity. I managed to get her away. Silly girl, she had no idea." Rina sniffed. "She wanted to go back, because we had to leave Bolgan behind." She slowly sipped her tea. "It worked out in the end, though. Bolgan managed to pay off his debts and rejoined us. We've been a happy travelling family since then." She smiled again.

Flik was looking downcast at the table by this time. "I…don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. It's enough that you listened."

They both looked up as someone entered the room. It was the innkeeper. He cast one sharp glance over at Bolgan and his tower, and then made his way over to Flik and Rina. "Excuse me, sir. But you must make accommodations for your party. Will you take one room or two? I needn't remind you that the cost is higher for two."

"Two," Flik answered, holding up two fingers for emphasis. "How much?"

"That will be four hundred potch, sir."

Flik rifled through his pockets. The best he was able to come up with was two fifty-three. Rina pulled the remainder out of a purse that hung around her hip and added it to Flik's pile.

The innkeeper scooped the payment up. "Very good. Please enjoy your stay at 'The Monarch's Crown.'" He tossed a pair of keys onto the table and walked away.

Flik handed one to Rina. "So, if you'll look after Pilika, I'll bunk with Bolgan."

Rina smiled, respectfully this time. "I knew you were a gentleman. Whoever this…someone important is, she's a very lucky woman."

Flik shook his head. "I was a very lucky man," he answered, but Rina had already turned away to collect Pilika.


	22. Chapter 22 That Foundation

**Chapter 22 – That Foundation**

_In Solis 460, Watersdei, the 11th of Mai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_It's hard to believe how quickly one's life can change. One month ago I still had a fort and Highland was simply a gathering menace. A month before that I thought we would have peace. I feel as though my life has become a stick in the rapids, buffeted from rock to rock. I have no choice but to see where the flow takes me._

_It is not unlike my time with Tir McDohl during the Liberation War._

_On a more positive note, Granmeyer came through with the potch, and so my men are not likely to stage a revolt any time soon. It is strange how many problems go away when just a little potch is thrown at them. Now if only Highland could be so easily bought off._

There was a knock at the door to Flik's room. He looked up, closed his book, and walked over to the door. When he opened it, he was greeted by Rina's smiling face.

"Hey, you don't want to stay in here all day, do you?" She beamed. "I want to go shopping."

Flik waved a hand. "You don't need my permission."

Rina snagged his hand with hers. "Want to come with me?" She began to pull him out into the hall.

"I really don't have much potch," Flik said.

"Silly," she answered. "You don't need to buy anything. I just want some company." Something in her tone reminded him of Odessa. They'd never had many chances to do something as casual as strolling down a street looking at the shops, so she'd made the most of every opportunity. Those whirlwind outings had usually left Flik's head spinning.

Rina reached around and closed the door to Flik's room. Then she set off down the hall, his hand still in hers. Of their own accord, his feet began to move.

Downstairs, they ran into Rossgard. He quirked an eye at the sight of them. "Sir, you forgot to take your stipend." He handed several strings of coins to Flik. "Also, I wanted your approval on some of the items that we need to purchase."

Rina started tugging on Flik's hand again, a determined look on her face. "I'm sure you know best as to what is necessary," he answered quickly. "I approve it all."

Rossgard nodded as Flik found himself being dragged towards the front door. "By the way," Rossgard announced, "we've scheduled a briefing for this afternoon, commander."

Flik would've answered, but Rina interjected, "I'll be sure to have him back by then. Don't worry about a thing."

Rossgard chuckled. "As you say, ma'am."

Outside, the city was awake, though not lively. Rina led Flik through the streets until they came to a district of small shops. She seemed to have found it purely on instinct. Wandering from shop to shop, she finally entered a jeweler's store. Flik followed her in.

They turned out to be the only customers in the place. It was a one-room shop with display cases backed against paneled walls. An older woman, the proprietress, walked over and began conversing with Rina, gesturing towards various pieces as they spoke. Flik felt very out of place. The only time he'd ever considered jewelry was when Odessa had jokingly suggested that he ought to have a blue earring to go with the rest of his outfit.

Meanwhile, Rina leaned over one particular set of earrings.

"Ah," the proprietress exclaimed. "You have a good eye. Those are pure, unblemished Tinto rubies. Very fine quality. Very rare."

"I think I'll get these for my sister," Rina mused. "Their sparkle matches her personality perfectly." Then she pointed to a silver bracelet. "I'll get that for myself."

The two women then settled down to haggling over the price. Flik watched, amazed, as they argued for almost half and hour. He'd never haggled that hard, even when buying horses for his men.

Finally the proprietress relented. "I can see that you've traveled a fair piece of the continent. Fine, I'll sell both items for eighteen hundred potch. No less."

"No less," Rina agreed, carefully fingering through the coins.

After they'd left, Rina said, "Pure! Unblemished! Ha, a third rate peddler in Crystal Valley would blush if he had to try and sell these things. Oh well, I'm sure Eilie will like them." She looked up at the sky. "Come on, let's get some lunch."

Without waiting for his assent, she pulled Flik down the street again. Eventually she found a little café with several tables set up out in front. The weather was warm and the sky only partly cloudy, so she sat down at one of them. He sat down across from her. When the waiter came, Rina ordered roasted duck in honey sauce for the two of them.

After the food arrived, she said, "Tell me about your hometown, Flik. You've learned about my past, and now I want to learn about yours."

Flik swallowed a piece of meat. "Well, Warrior's Village is in the Lorimar region of Toran, about a hundred miles southwest of Gregminster."

Rina nodded. "I see. The closest we ever came was Antei. It was very warm then, even during the winter."

Flik laughed. "It's warmer in Warrior's Village. We hardly ever see more than a couple of inches of snow. Many winters, maybe every third, we don't get any snow at all in the village."

"Did you go out and have snowball fights when that happened?" Rina asked, smiling.

"We never really had the chance," Flik responded, picking up another piece of the bird. "For a boy at Warrior's Village, every day was about training, almost as soon as you could walk. I think I was more grateful when it didn't snow, because then I didn't get wet and cold trying to run through it."

Rina frowned. "Sounds like a tough life."

"I never thought of it that way," Flik replied. "It was just the way things were. I really didn't see anything different until after I left. Even so, I'm still grateful that they did teach me those things. I'd probably be dead several times over without all that training."

"Why did you leave?"

"I was thirteen at the start of the Succession War between Barbarossa Rugner and his uncle, Geil. I was just a kid, but I was hungry for action. Then the elders of Warrior's Village decided for neutrality in the conflict." Flik paused, letting out a breath. "It may even have been the right move, but it made me very angry. I thought that they were cowards, using tradition as a cloak to hide their inaction. Three years after that I left. It's funny in a way, because I used the tradition of the "Journey of Manhood" as my excuse to leave. I hadn't even named my sword."

"You name your sword?" Rina asked, eyes wide and interested.

Reflexively, Flik reached down to grasp the pommel of his. "Yeah, it's another Warrior's Village tradition. We name our swords after the person who is most important to us."

Rina leaned forward. "Have you named your sword now? Maybe after that…someone important that you were talking about?"

Flik didn't get the chance to answer. Instead, someone up the street shouted, "Highland soldiers are coming! Highland soldiers are in the city!" Flik jumped up, knocking his chair to the ground. Rina looked around, wearing a worried expression as she scanned the street. People were dashing towards buildings. The door to the restaurant slammed shut.

Flik walked around the table and took Rina's hand, guiding her out of the chair. "We need to get back to my men," Flik said. Tight-lipped, Rina smiled and nodded. He tossed a string of potch on the table and set off towards the barracks at a jog.

It was hard work getting to that building. The people in the street were rushing in the opposite direction, away from the potential danger. Some of them were so panicked that they didn't even try to get out of Flik's way. These he tried to dodge around or, as a last resort, elbow them aside. His Warrior's Village training and strength helped him absorb the impacts and keep his balance. Behind him, Rina held his hand with both of hers, hanging on as the crowds surged past.

The streets were emptier by the time Flik and Rina reached the western barracks near the interior wall. He wiped his brow in relief when he saw that the senior sergeants had already assembled the men.

Rossgard saluted when Flik walked up. "Sir, we've gathered all the men not out buying supplies. I haven't seen any Highlanders, and nobody seems to know where they are."

"What about Bolgan and Pilika?" Rina asked, still clutching Flik's hand.

"I sent some men to get them," Rossgard explained. "We'll bring them with us. That way, if the worst happens, we can all retreat together."

"Good work," Flik said. Then he thought about the layout of the city for a few moments. The men nearby shifted uneasily. His cavalrymen looked very uncomfortable without horses. "If they came through the southwest gate," Flik commented, "they'll have to come through the tunnel right by the inn. That seems to me to be the best place to try and stop them."

"Seems workable," Rossgard replied. "At least for a while."

"I'll take any victories I can get, no matter how small," Flik answered. "Fire Spears to the front," he commanded the men. "We march by squads at the double time. Let's go!"

He jogged again, this time towards the inner wall and its tunnel. Behind him, he could hear the sergeants calling cadence and the beating of many feet on the pavement. He glanced to his side, registering the slightly higher pitched breathing of Rina, keeping pace with him. She'd drawn some sort of cards out of her purse. Flik almost ordered her to the back, but knew that he didn't have time for the argument if it came to that. He'd just have to trust that she could take care of herself.

Bolgan and Pilika arrived. They wisely choose to go to the rear. That was two fewer things for Flik to worry about. On the other hand, well before he got to the tunnel exit, he saw a pair of retreating South Window soldiers.

"There's hundreds of them!" one shouted.

"They're in the tunnel, we're doomed!" the other screamed.

Flik was tempted to have his officers rope those two back into line, if for no better reason than to show his men that fleeing didn't offer safety. Instead, he scanned the road leading to the tunnel. There were people marching through the shadows of the passage…a lot of people.

Flik drew his sword. "Rossgard, take your half-company around to the left and secure the wall." Rossgard's men immediately started sprinting in that direction. When the next senior sergeant, Jerrim, approached, Flik sent him off to the far right to secure that side. Tarrance and Danel he placed to his right and left, with the hundred of Viktor's infantry as the reserve. Rina, for some odd reason, continued to stay with Flik at the center of the line.

The force in the tunnel had come to a stop, just a little too far from the exit to make out clearly. Flik nodded; depending on their numbers, he could hold them off for quite some time if they chose to make a frontal assault. Of course, if they were large enough, they'd roll over him eventually. And if they were smart enough, they'd simply use the interior wall to bypass him entirely.

They did neither. Rather, one of the men from within the force started walking forward by himself. Flik worried his chin. It made sense that they'd want to talk, but it might simply be a ploy to buy time for other units to find a way around him. He gripped his sword in frustration. Without any guidance from the local military forces, he decided to see what the messenger would say.

Flik squinted. The messenger was not a tall man, in fact, he seemed to be shorter than average. He also seemed to be wearing a nonmilitary uniform…possibly some sort of dress gown…or a kilt. The messenger stepped out of the shadows of the tunnel into the full sunshine, light suddenly glinting off of glasses. Flik blinked in surprise.

"You're slower than I expected," Apple declared brusquely, as she walked out into the intended killing field. "I thought for sure that you'd have intercepted us at the other end of the tunnel."

Flik felt his anxiety melting into giddiness. "Apple!" he cried. "Is that really you?" He noticed Rina putting the cards away. His men began to visibly relax, some lowering their Fire Spears.

Apple continued forward. "Of course it's me. Gilbert's back there too, with his men and most of yours, as well." She adjusted her glass, looking directly at Rina. "I see," Apple said, with a sly smile. "It seems I didn't take one variable into account."

"What variable?" Flik asked, before realizing what she meant. He looked over at Rina, who was giving him a coy smile. He began to blush. "This isn't what it seems," Flik tried to explain.

Rina cocked a shoulder. "So, is she your 'someone important?'"

Flik felt sweat breaking out over his forehead. "No. I guess she's kind of like the strategist for the mercenaries."

Apple, having made it halfway between the tunnel and Flik, set her hands on her hips and shouted, "So when are you going to order your men to stop pointing those Fire Spears at us. I don't think Gilbert wants to spend all day in that tunnel."

Rina laughed pleasantly. "You lead a very interesting life, Flik of the Blue Lightning."

The dining room was quite boisterous that night as Flik listened to various people recount their adventures.

"The waves were huge!" Millie exclaimed, throwing her arms wide. "And the boat kept bouncing all over the place. I've never had so much fun." Bonaparte rested contentedly on the table in front of her.

Anita sniffed at the young girl's theatrics. "Everybody was soaked. Personally, I don't ever want to repeat the experience. Just the thought of it makes me a little queasy."

"Gengen was soaked too!" the kobold declared. "Being on a boat was a completely new experience for me."

"Speaking of new experiences," Kinnison said. "There aren't very many trees here. Shiro always gets a little nervous when there are too many people around." Actually, the innkeeper looked more nervous than the wolf. Shiro had curled up in one corner of the room, while the proprietor was obviously shocked at having his inn taken over by this rowdy crowd.

"Did anyone hear anything about the Highland Army?" Flik asked.

"Not a word," Rikimaru answered, finishing up his fifth bowl of stew. "Maybe they've decided to stay on the other side of the lake?"

"I don't think so," Apple replied, and everybody grew silent. "Luca Blight doesn't know the meaning of holding back. As soon as he's able, he'll try to send units across." She sighed. "Flik, I want your opinion. When we were marching towards the city, we didn't meet any patrols. Nobody even tried to question our intentions. Do you think South Window will fight when it comes to that?"

"I don't know," Flik responded. "I think everybody's a little shocked at how quickly Muse fell. Once they've had a chance to think about it, yes, I think they will fight. Especially if Viktor can resolve the problem in North Window."

"I hope you're right," Apple said. "Hopefully we'll have time to set things in order."

The following morning while Flik was still in bed, he heard the cry, "The Highlanders have arrived!" He rolled over and tried to get some more sleep. After the events of the past two days, he figured it had to be another false alarm.

About an hour later, he woke to furious pounding on the door to his room. "Get up!" Apple shouted. "Granmeyer's called a meeting to discuss the Highland envoy's news."

Flik groggily sat up in bed, scratching the top of his head. "Highland…envoy?" he asked.

He could hear Apple's exasperation through the door. "Yes! Just get up and get dressed. Granmeyer's sent for you specifically. You won't do us any good by being late."

Flik knew how to take orders. He got out of bed, shaved, and dressed. When he went downstairs, the dining room was buzzing with anticipation. Apple intercepted him before he could grab anything to eat. "Listen," she said. "When you arrive, you'll be seated closest to the door and on Granmeyer's right -your left. Whatever happens, you must not speak out of turn. That's very important."

"Okay," Flik answered, looking longingly at the sticky cinnamon rolls that the others were digging into.

"Good. Now, the Highland envoy will probably be offering some sort of surrender terms." Apple grabbed Flik by the shoulders and shook him, none too gently. "Whatever else happens, you must try to keep Granmeyer in the fight."

Flik tried to clear his head. "I understand. But what if Granmeyer decides to give up?"

"I've got a plan for that, too," Apple explained. "I just hope it doesn't come to that." She looked at the grandfather clock on the wall. "Right, time for you to go." She hustled him towards the door.

"But what about breakfast?" Flik could feel himself starting to drool over those rolls.

"No time," Apple declared. "Good luck!" Then she pushed him right out the door.

On the way to the mayoral palace, Flik stopped to buy a meat sandwich from one of the street vendors. It was sloppy, and he hoped that he hadn't dribbled any of it onto his clothes. The streets were quiet again, even in the old part of town. The monk Gantetsu was not in evidence at the standing stone.

There was a crowd at the wall to the palace. Gawkers, several rows deep, stood in a rough semicircle around the first gate. Flik had to muscle his way through the crowd just to get at the officials standing guard. One of them was the same man who'd ushered Viktor and Flik the first time, so he managed to get in without any trouble.

Now Flik was led to a different part of the palace, to a much larger room with a dais at the far end. On each wall was a golden dragon relief which coiled and wound from one end of the room to the other. The columns in the room were also in gold leaf.

Granmeyer sat in a throne on the dais with his civil and military officials seated below him on either hand. Flik walked to the cushion closest to the doors and sat down. Not surprisingly, he'd been the last to arrive.

Granmeyer looked in Flik's direction, nodded, and said, "Let the envoy from Highland be brought before us."

The doors were opened and one man strode in. Flik recognized him at once, having fought against him in two battles. He was dressed in a black coat with white trim, his cape fluttering slightly as he walked. His hair was silvery gray, but he did not look old. In fact, he looked confident and serious as his black boots echoed on the tile floor. Halfway to the dais he stopped and bowed formally.

As the envoy came back upright, Granmeyer motioned a servant forward. The man bore a goblet filled with wine. The envoy accepted the cup, took a little sip, and handed it back. This ritual concluded, Granmeyer spoke, "Welcome, envoy of Highland. Know that whatever news you bear, no harm shall come to one who has drunk under my roof. Now, speak your name and your business."

The envoy spoke deeply and smoothly. "I am Lord Culgan of Redcliff. I speak for Lord Solon Jhee, commander of the Highland Second Army and, through him, for Prince Luca Blight, who leads Highland against the forces of the City-States." He paused, staring at Granmeyer as the mayor shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "I come to offer you terms by which you may surrender to us and avoid any further unnecessary bloodshed."

There were some murmurs from the officers, especially the civilian ministers. "Quiet," Granmeyer snapped, making a cutting motion with his hand. When silence had returned, he addressed Culgan. "Speak your terms."

Flik desperately wanted to speak, to tell Granmeyer not to listen to this man at all, but Apple's admonition stilled his voice.

Culgan nodded. "First, all South Window forces, including those under contract to the city, will stand down and hold in position. Second, that the Highland Army shall be permitted unobstructed entrance into the city. Third, the Highland Army shall take up key positions, including the barracks at every gate, and at vital points in the interior walls. Fourth, the Highland Army shall be in no way impeded in either entering the city or in taking those positions. Fifth, the current administration of South Window shall stay in place, unmolested, save for the addition of an advisor named by the Highland general. Sixth, South Window shall, at its own expense, provide auxiliaries to Highland for the purpose of securing order within the province. Seven, South Window shall pay Highland an indemnity to be determined at a later date." He smiled. "These are the terms."

Granmeyer steepled his hands. "I see. You do not mind if I take advice from my men?"

Culgan continued to smile. "Do as you will, mayor."

Granmeyer looked to his right at the closest man. "What do you think, Arnhem?"

This man, a pudgy older fellow in gaudy ceremonial armor replied, "My judgement is to accept, my lord. We have no means of holding off Highland's army by ourselves and no promises of support from any of the other City-States."

Granmeyer glanced over at his chief minister. The minister was a tall, lanky, bald man who said, "I concur with the general, my lord. The bankers and merchants are very concerned about what might happen during a period of instability. What we need to do is to reassure them that their trade will go on peacefully."

Granmeyer seemed to sink into his throne as he listened to this assessment. Finally he asked, "Is there anyone here who disagrees with these opinions?"

Flik watched as the generals and ministers remained motionless. Sighing, he stood up. Several of the nearby officials frowned, but he ignored them and waited for Granmeyer to acknowledge his presence. Culgan glanced sidelong at Flik and then looked back at the mayor.

Granmeyer eyed Flik levelly and said, "Speak your mind, Flik."

Flik took a breath, marshalling his arguments. Then he spoke. "Lord mayor, your forces have not yet come to blows with the Highland Army. There is no sense in surrendering the city when you can very well emerge victorious. This envoy speaks in a bluff; Highland does not have the men to conquer South Window, hold Muse, and defend against the inevitable counterattacks by the Matilda Knights, among others. Do not give to Highland by diplomacy what they cannot take by force."

Arnhem stood up to counter. "My lord, you cannot possibly follow that advice. Lamentably, our defenses are in a horrible state of neglect. The walls are practically crumbling. We'd be overrun in hours and then the city would be put to the sack. Think of your people, sir."

Flik glared at the chief general. Wasn't it this man's responsibility to see that the defenses were ready? Regardless, Flik pushed on. "That is simply not true, mayor. I have seen those walls; the façade may be deteriorating, but the foundation is solid. Highland doesn't possess any siege weapons. Let the enemy's units march around our walls for months, and they still will not get in."

"Muse fell," the chief civil minister rebutted. "They were in much better readiness than we are. Besides, a protracted siege risks the outbreak of disease, my lord. Your people would suffer."

Flik squeezed his eyes shut in frustration. Trying to keep calm, he argued, "Do you think your people would be any happier dominated by Highland? Will they be happy when their sons are called on to serve in Highland's army for Highland's ends? Or when they have to pay increased taxes for the "honor" of having a Highland garrison stationed in their city? Lord Granmeyer, your city's forces may not be in the best shape, but I am certain that they will fight to defend their homes and livelihoods. Like your walls, they will hold if the foundation is secure." Flik paused, pointing at Granmeyer. "You, sir, are that foundation. If you are steady, then all of Highland's attacks will be for naught. If you falter, then you will bring all your people down with you." Flik took one final breath. "I know that war is difficult and uncertain. I have felt the hardship and sadness it brings. But you will earn no merit if you leave your people to the mercy of the wolf when you could've fought back and emerged victorious."

He sat down, exhausted. He didn't have any arguments left. Arnhem, the chief general, still had one. "My lord, do not listen to this barbarian from Scarlet Moon. You know all too well how they seek to weaken us. Did they not lure us into Senan with their lies only to turn around and attack us? Think hard, lord. With Highland's help, we can stabilize the province. All Scarlet Moon has ever sought is our overthrow."

Granmeyer waved for silence, brooding over what he'd heard. Flik prayed fervently to the spirits of the great heroes, hoping that they'd nerve the mayor into fighting. For one moment, he thought his prayers had been answered. A fire sparked in the mayor's eyes as he stared at Culgan. The confident smile on Culgan's face diminished, and he looked once again at Flik.

Then the fire died, stillborn, and the mayor's countenance turned to ash. The skin on Granmeyer's face seemed to stretch tight as he said, "Tell your master that South Window accedes to Highland's demands. All South Window forces will remain in place. You may advance unimpeded."

Culgan artfully hid his relief by bowing once again. "Lord Granmeyer, you have made the correct decision. I tell you, Highland bears your people no grudge. Our soldiers will not harm the people of South Window in the slightest. I bid you a good day." He turned and departed from the hall.

Flik felt the bile rising in his stomach and tried to swallow it. The chief minister had stood up and was saying, "A most excellent decision lord. Your people will thank you now that they know their lives will continue as normal."

"Will they?" Granmeyer asked, weakly. "I feel so old all of a sudden."

Flik got to his feet. Granmeyer noted the movement and tried to meet his eyes. He couldn't; whatever he saw in Flik's eyes caused Granmeyer to turn away. Flik gritted his teeth and made for the exit.

Out in the hall he found Culgan waiting. "That was well argued," Culgan said. "I thought that for a moment, Granmeyer was going to be swayed."

Flik glared at his opponent. "It doesn't seem to matter. You've won, and without a drop of blood shed."

Culgan nodded. "Yes, we have." He looked around the hallway, noted that it was empty, and then spoke again. "I would strongly advise you not to be in this city when we occupy it."

"Why?" Flik responded spitefully. "You want to fight us some more?"

Culgan laughed once. "Listen carefully, Blue Lightning. I bear you no personal animus, but there are many within Highland who do. My comrade, Seed, is still fuming over what you did to him back in East Muse. And I am certain that if he doesn't kill you, then Solon Jhee will. Both of them are eager to make your head a present to Prince Luca Blight."

With an effort, Flik set his anger aside. "Thank you for the advice."

"I respect a man who will stand and fight, that's all." He turned to leave the palace, but stopped and said, "That does not mean I will not try to catch you, and if I do, I will turn you over to my superiors. Should you manage to escape, you ought to return to your homeland. This war has nothing to do with you."

Then he stepped out the grand doors of the palace, leaving Flik to consider his options.


	23. Chapter 23 Summoning the Fortitude

**Chapter 23 – Summoning the Fortitude**

Flik hurried through the streets, his feet propelled by things he knew and things he did not. He had no idea how many Highland soldiers stood outside the walls, waiting only for Culgan's return to march into the city. He did not know how long it would take to gather his own men and try to flee. He did not know where he would flee to, when it came to that. He did know one thing though. If he remained within the city, he was a dead man. Only a firm sense of responsibility to the people in his care held him back from running for the first gate out of the city.

South Window had suddenly come alive, the streets buzzing with people passing rumors back and forth in hurried tones.

"Did you hear?" an old man said. "The Mayor's going to surrender to Highland without a fight."

A youth answered, "I heard that Highland is demanding a tenth part of all the wealth in the city as tribute."

Around the corner was another rumor. "I hear they're going to round up the thousand most beautiful virgins in the city and take them back to Highland."

The reply was, "I hear Luca Blight uses women the way a miller grinds flour. Uses them up and throws out the husks."

Flik wiped at his brow. The city was simmering, and the wind was picking up from the southwest. It seemed to get warmer with each of his long strides. There was still more gossip on the wide street where the merchants' warehouses stood.

"I have a friend among the palace guards who heard the terms. Highland's going to round up all the men over sixteen and draft them into the army."

A burly worker responded, "Why did Granmeyer go and do that? I'd have fought to keep Highland out, if anybody asked. Why should I go and fight for them?"

Farther down the lane, several merchants discussed the news, furtively looking around.

"They say that Highland is going to burn down the merchants' quarter and turn it into an armed camp."

"I heard that the hundred richest men in Muse were all executed, and their property turned over to Highland."

"My cousin says that a friend from Muse told her that Luca Blight bathed in the blood of those men."

Flik's head began to spin from all the stories he was hearing. Not one of them was correct, save that they all mentioned that Granmeyer was going to surrender. He continued on. The sun was already past its midday peak.

He was sweating profusely by the time he returned to the inn. Much to his surprise, Rossgard's half-company was busy forming up in the shadow of the interior wall. Apple, her sleeves rolled up and her yellow coat hanging loose on her frame, was directing them. Rina and Bolgan were packing up their belongings, settling them squarely on Bolgan's broad shoulders.

Flik staggered up, panting. "What's going on? Apple, we've got a huge problem."

Apple, her face flush in the heat, smiled. "Already taken care of."

Flik was too busy trying not to throw up to look amazed. "What?" he gasped.

"I figured that Granmeyer wasn't going to fight. So we're leaving. We'll use the disturbance as our cover. I've had people out all morning, planting rumors and working the crowds."

"That-" Flik heaved a huge breath. "That explains everything I've been hearing."

Apple nodded. "Yes. Now, are you able to walk, or do I need to get you some water?"

Flik's head was clearing; there was nothing like impending danger to goad the body on to higher efforts. Still, he voiced one qualm that came to mind. "This is very deceitful. None of those rumors are true, and a lot of people could get hurt in the mayhem."

"The choice is yours, Flik: escape or don't." She sighed and frowned. "Personally, I don't care to spend the rest of my life locked up in some Highland dungeon…or worse."

Culgan's warning whispered in the back of Flik's mind. He knew what would happen if Highland managed to catch him. "Let's do this. If we hesitate, it'll only make things bloodier in the end."

"Good," Apple replied. "I've already sent most of the others on ahead. We were only waiting on you. The meeting point will be to the northwest, at the intersection between the Cave of the Wind and North Window."

They departed, marching off towards the tunnel in the interior wall. The shade was a relief from the heat, but the afternoon sun seemed to be waiting with redoubled strength as they left the tunnel behind. In this poorer neighborhood, people were streaming towards the northwest gate, pushing forward furiously. As Flik's formation entered the press, more people closed in behind them. His men made their way forward by dint of discipline and unity.

As the mercenaries approached the gates, the crowd hesitated. A squad of Highland cavalry had just appeared at the entrance, fighting its way against the current. Its leader shouted, "Disperse, all of you! You are in violation of the terms of the armistice."

The crowd screamed insults back, but no one was ready to be the first to step towards them. However the pressure from behind was still building. Flik knew that all it would take was one person slipping to start a disaster. They had to get out through that gate.

Rina was the one who came up with the solution. She hefted up a fist-sized chunk of loose paving stone and handed it to Bolgan, who lobbed it in the direction of the Highland cavalry. It struck their leader square on the head, and he collapsed right out of his saddle. Emboldened, the crowd pressed forward, and the rest of the Highlanders scattered.

Once they were outside the gates, the going was a little easier. Flik led them off due west, trying to find an easy way onto the west road. The hot south wind roared, and, from that direction, a wall of darkness seemed to creep towards him.

"It's a dust storm," Apple explained when Flik asked. "High winds blowing over the Karakas Desert create them. If the storm gets here quickly enough, it might screen our flight."

Flik looked to the north. A large force of Highland soldiers was marching down the north road, several thousand at least. More cavalry were making their way towards the gate, too many for those seeking to flee to easily turn aside. Ominously, some of that cavalry was peeling off to the west.

Flik urged his men on to the northwest, gaining the road, but there was little his flagging men could do to outrun the horsemen. Riding two hundred yards to the north of the road, they quickly came alongside and began shooting arrows towards his men. Flik ordered his men to change facing, preparing to use the Fire Spears. Even as they did, the enemy cavalry wheeled and trotted onwards, farther to the west.

Now in front of the mercenaries, they came south to interdict the road. Even at a distance, Flik could see that it was Culgan who led this particular group of enemies. Apple suggested they turn off the road and find a group of South Window refugees to hide in. Flik turned the men back towards the north, angling towards one such group.

But Culgan's men pursued vigorously, nipping at the mercenaries with pinprick arrow attacks, then riding on ahead, cutting the mercenaries off from their goal. Flik turned back towards the road, using the Fire Spears to lay down a screen of flame. The Highland mounted archers were driven back for a time but reappeared to the northwest again.

Flik considered his options. The Fire Spears could keep Culgan's men off him for a time, but the spears would eventually fail from overuse. The wall of dust was closer, stretching across the entire southern horizon. There was also a series of low ridges in that direction. Flik led his men towards the approaching storm, hoping to lose Culgan in it and the terrain.

He soon found that the Highland general was exceedingly clever. Half the mounted archers, a force still larger than Flik's beleaguered men, split off from the main unit and raced ahead, while the other half shadowed him from behind. There did not seem to be any opening to escape his pursuers, so Flik led his men towards a thicket of tall, prickly brush. He deployed the mercenaries around the perimeter and hoped that the foliage would keep the arrows out. The two mounted archer units circled for a time, firing arrows that didn't kill anyone but kept his men pinned down. After a while they stopped even that, holding their ground as messengers passed back and forth between the two enemy forces.

Flik glanced up at the approaching storm. It seemed to be about half an hour off. "What do you suppose they're talking about?" he asked Apple.

"If I were they, I'd be coordinating where they're going to attack," she replied casually. "They're deciding which part of the formation to attack now, so that you don't have time to shift more men to the proper position."

"You have a plan?" he asked.

Apple wiped dust off her glasses. "We need to buy some more time, then we might be able to escape in the storm. The problem is, I don't know how to get that time."

"Could we use the Fire Spears, maybe make a circle of fire around our position and wait them out?"

"No." Apple shook her head. "With this wind, that's much too dangerous. The fire would almost certainly be blown right back onto our positions."

Flik hung his head and pondered an even more desperate idea. "I could surrender myself to them. I'm the one they're after, anyway. If they had me, then they might go away, and you could escape to North Window."

Apple did not reply, but Rina did. "That's stupid," she said heatedly. "You want to give up now, without fighting? If you do that, then you're no better than Granmeyer."

That stung. "What do you suggest?" Flik asked.

"Sleight of hand," Rina answered. "In a card trick, you show the audience a particular card, and then distract them with something that looks important, all the while slipping the card away. It works every time."

Flik frowned. "I don't understand."

"I do," Apple said. "You want to dress somebody up to look like Flik, right?"

Rina smiled. "When the Highlanders see somebody that looks like Flik leading the men out of this thicket, they'll follow after him immediately. Then you," she pointed at Flik, "can sneak out while the Highland Army is distracted."

Apple also smiled. "That just might work, but who will play Flik?"

Rossgard stepped back from the edge of the bramble. "I should be the one, I think."

Flik studied the senior sergeant for a moment. "Your hair's too dark, and you're going bald. Besides, you look older than I do."

"None of that matters," Rina explained. "Most of the Highland soldiers have never seen you close up. Show them a man in a blue cape, blue bandanna, and blue leather coat leading a group of mercenaries, and they will believe it's you."

The wind rattled the branches of the underbrush. There was no time left for doubts. "Fine," Flik said. "I agree." He untied the bandana and found that it was soaked with his own sweat. After that he unbuckled the cape, handing it to Rossgard. Finally, he pulled off the leather armor. He was actually much more comfortable in his yellow shirt and black pants. Rossgard put the bandana, cape, and armor on. "You still don't look a thing like me," Flik commented, when the costume was complete. "Never mind, this will have to work."

Rossgard smiled. "We'll lead them on a merry chase. After a while, I'll take these things off. Hopefully, that'll confuse them as to your whereabouts. Then we can slip off during the storm."

"Don't get yourself killed," Flik said.

"I don't intend to."

"Don't lose my stuff either," Flik continued.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

Minutes later, Rossgard and the mercenaries charged out of the tangle, making a feint towards the closer of the two Highland units. Flik, Rina, Bolgan, and Apple, lying in the thickest portion of the bramble, watched as Flik's soldiers began using Fire Spears to drive the Highlanders back. The diversion went on for a few more minutes before the men disappeared beyond a ridge to the south and west. Both enemy units trotted off in pursuit.

"Seems to have worked." Flik managed to start breathing again.

"Seems to have," Rina commented, cool and confident.

Flik and the others waited a little bit more, and the storm finally came up. Red and yellow dust swirled in the air, and visibility was suddenly no more than a few feet in any direction. They started coughing, gagging on the grit. Flik unrolled the neck of his shirt and pulled it up to his mouth. That helped, a little.

The four of them wandered away from the thicket, heading in the direction that Apple believed was north. Flik hoped they'd reach the road quickly, as the sun was now far to the west, and the day's light was failing.

They did find the road, struggling into a crowd of refugees travelling along it to the north and west. Now, at least, Flik had anonymity. He held Rina's hand with his left hand and Apple's with his right. Bolgan plodded ahead, his size making him unmistakable, if indistinct in the evening light.

The dust storm continued to howl, even into the coming of full night. The heat was nearly unbearable, but Flik did not see anybody stop. Not that he could see much of anything. His awareness of Rina and Apple had shrunk to just their hands in his. Bolgan was just a larger shadow in the midst of a horde of shambling shades.

The march continued for many hours, but, because of the storm, Flik could not see the moons to measure the time. He had no sense of distance either. He just continued putting one foot in front of the other until he walked right into Bolgan. He stumbled back a bit, losing his grip on the women's hands.

"Sorry, sir," Bolgan rumbled gently. "We seem to have stopped."

Flik shook his head and spat grit out of his mouth. All of his clothes were covered in the stuff. "Where are we?" he asked, when he had his mouth clear.

"I assume it must be the crossroads," Apple replied. "I told the others to wait there until morning. It's possible that everyone's just been coming to a halt at that point."

"Even if it isn't," Rina suggested, "we may as well get some sleep. I'm tired and I don't see any point in blundering around not knowing where we're going."

They tried to rest sitting up, Flik and Bolgan back to back, with Apple to Flik's left and Rina to his right. He closed his eyes and tried to relax his mind, letting the noise of the wind and the aching of his muscles fade into the background.

Suddenly it was morning, and the storm was gone. Flik had just this moment of realization before Bolgan tried to crush him. It wasn't intentional, the larger man was simply leaning back into Flik and yawning as loudly as he could.

Flik did his best to scramble away. "Careful there," he chided.

Bolgan looked around, abashed. "I forget my own size sometimes."

Flik stood up and brushed himself off. "No harm done." Rina and Apple were on their feet, faces coated with dirt from the storm. Come to think of it, his was too, and it had a layer of unshaven stubble. He ran a hand through his messy hair, noted with alarm the lack of his normal blue bandanna, and remembered the events of the previous day. He wondered if his men were okay.

Apple took off her glasses and tried to clean them. All she managed to do was push the dirt around a little. She gave up and said, "Let's see if we can find Leona in this mess." Since she couldn't see much, she let Flik guide her by hand.

Bolgan got to his feet and the four of them set off through the crowd. As Flik looked around, he mulled over the fact that he'd been getting a lot of experience with large groups of refugees. Just as in East Muse, they were clumped together in groups of five, ten, or twenty. This time they were not seeking warmth, but simply comfort from being near other people. It was much warmer than in East Muse, and the people around Flik already stank of sweat and earth. A few others had gotten up and were moving about, but most of them seemed to be too exhausted to go anywhere yet.

They found the men of Viktor's Mercenary Army mostly because their camp was the most orderly portion of the larger refugee horde. Bolgan, being the tallest, had spotted them first, pointing the proper direction. As Flik walked towards his men, he took stock of their appearance. They looked disheveled, but otherwise in as good spirits as might be expected after fleeing for their lives.

On the other hand, they almost didn't recognize him without his trademark blue clothing. "Is that really you?" Tarrance asked, after Flik had shouted for a meeting of the senior sergeants.

It was Leona who answered. "Yes, it is him. He's looking a little worse for wear and seems to be missing some of his clothing, but that's Flik." She didn't look that great herself. None of Riou's recruits did. Even the ever optimistic Millie wasn't sporting a smile on this morning.

Tarrance had another question. "What happened to Rossgard and the men that were supposed to be with you?"

"He led a diversion so that I could escape," Flik reported. "It seems that Highland was after me specifically, so he took my cape, bandanna, and coat and led his men away, pretending to be me."

This brought some chuckles and snorts from the senior sergeants. "I can almost see it," Tarrance replied, smiling. His grin faded. "I hope he made it."

"I do too." Flik nodded. "Regardless, we have to move out. The goal for today's march is North Window. If we get there, we can possibly get food and water from the surrounding villages. After that, we'll see. The marching order will be-"

"Troops approaching!" someone from the refugees shouted, dashing past the mercenaries' camp. "From the south!"

Screaming filled the air. A lot of people shook off their lethargy in a panic, bolting in the first clear direction. Many others, especially those in large groups, wearily got to their feet and shambled towards the north. A large plurality simply chose to remain in position, too tired to do much of anything.

"Form a square," Flik commanded, yelling. It was not a formation the mercenaries had much practice in, and it took a lot of jostling for the companies to get into the right position. Luckily, the crowds were spooked by any armed men, and so they didn't foul the defensive lines. Flik squinted off to the south, trying to get a good look at the approaching soldiers. He couldn't see much of anything, save the refugees and the dust that their panic was kicking up.

Minutes went by and Flik still didn't see any enemy. He wondered if it wasn't just a false alarm. Finally, with the dust beginning to settle down, he did see a group of men approaching.

Flik looked at his own men. Those closest to him had tense faces, hands ready on the Fire Spears. He pulled out his sword. "Ready Fire Spears!"

He waited a moment to see the extent of the enemy. He didn't want to waste his precious spears on a feint or a skirmish line. This first group didn't seem to be a skirmish line. It was more like a clump of men in a marching column.

Then Flik caught sight of the man in a blue cape, blue bandanna, and blue coat who was leading them. He laughed out loud, long and hard. "Stand down!" he shouted, fighting for his breath. "Stand down." Relieved smiles broke out on the faces of the nearby mercenaries, for they too could see who approached. Even the panic among the refugees was subsiding.

Rossgard walked his battered contingent towards Flik. He saluted and then began untying the bandanna from around his forehead. "With all due respect," Rossgard said, in an exhausted tone. "I think I'll go back to being a humble senior sergeant. If that storm hadn't come up, I'm sure they would've ridden us into the ground."

Flik took back his raiment. "I'm glad that you and the men made it out okay. When we have enough potch to spend, I'm going to give your half-company an entire month's pay as bonus."

A few men in Rossgard's half-company whooped, but most of them looked like they were ready to fall asleep where they stood. Rossgard rubbed his forehead. "I do bring some distressing news, sir." He looked back to his men. "Bring that fellow forward to speak to the commander," he ordered.

Flik recognized the man as soon as he caught a glimpse of him. He could hardly forget him, even without the gaudy golden armor he'd seen in Granmeyer's audience hall. Arnhem, chief among the generals of South Window, bowed deeply as he was ushered before Flik. Somehow, the fact that he had fled wasn't the least bit surprising.

"I have terrible, terrible news," he squeaked, when he'd finished bowing.

Flik waved a hand dismissively. "Get on with it."

Flik's tone seemed to catch Arnhem off guard. The pudgy general flustered a bit and began babbling. "Well, it was yesterday when the Highland soldiers suddenly burst into the palace. I suppose they didn't find me because I was on the toilet. I threw off my armor and hid among the refugees in the palace. They rounded up all the officials and cut off their heads. They said it was because of we violated the terms of the surrender. They even killed Lord Granmeyer."

The crowd groaned at this news. Men and women began weeping.

"Which general?" Flik asked. It couldn't have been Culgan, he seemed too honorable for that sort of underhandedness. Besides, he'd been chasing Flik for much of yesterday. "Do you know who it was?"

Arnhem's tongue stuck in his mouth. He was close to crying, too. "Solon Jhee," he squeezed out. "Solon Jhee did it. Then he kicked Granmeyer's corpse and told the men to place the heads at every gate on the walls. That was when I left the city." He fell silent.

Flik glanced around; people were looking at him as if expecting an elegy, but he couldn't find the words. He was still upset with the late mayor for not trying to defend South Window. But the crowds were waiting for some sort of closure. Flik sighed and relented, summoning the fortitude to find the right thing to say.

"Lord Granmeyer was a patron of the arts, a man of peace born into an age of war. He deserved peace, to let his talents shine, but Highland stole that away from him." Slowly, Flik gazed across the refugees and his men. "If you truly wish to honor Lord Granmeyer's death, then help us to throw Highland out and bring the peace that he would've wished for back to your land."

Flik had never counted himself as a great orator, but there was some applause at the end of his little speech. There definitely seemed to be less crying. His own men were nodding respectfully. He smiled. "Right. We move out for North Window. All those who wish to fight for Lord Granmeyer, follow me."

And much to Flik's amazement, the crowd did.


	24. Chapter 24 What Can We Do

**Chapter 24 – What Can We Do**

Marching towards North Window did not turn out to be a very pleasant experience. The winds had shifted to the southwest, and, even if they did not bring another sandstorm, they were fully as hot as yesterday's. For once, Flik did not long for the warmer clime of Warrior's Village. Even though he'd spent many summers training in this sort of heat, he did not feel comfortable with sweat soaking his bandanna and forehead.

After a few hours of marching, around noon, Flik managed to spot North Window in the distance. By this time, it was clear that they were marching down a peninsula, with the greenish-blue of Lake Dunan to the north and east, and the river Granias -the border between South Window and Two Rivers- to the west. All he could see through the heat haze was the decrepit wall of the empty town. It did not look like the sort of place that was going to be able to support a couple thousand people anytime soon.

As he was thinking this, Flik noticed a man walking down the road, out of the town. He was a very warm looking man, dressed in a huge black coat with brown trim and a wide collar. The coat fell past his knees almost to the top of his black boots. As he approached Flik, he pulled off his brown beret and dabbed at his blond hair.

"Damn heat," the stranger complained conversationally. "Now I understand why the Night Rune couldn't tolerate the Sun Rune."

Questions warred in Flik's head, but he had more important things to ask than pursuing stories about runic lore. "You just came from North Window, right?" he asked. "What's the situation there? And did you run into a man named Viktor?"

The stranger laughed once, though he didn't sound jovial. "I did just come from North Window. I'm a vampire hunter, by the name of Kahn Marley. There was a vampire called Neclord there, but he got away. And, yes, I did run into a man named Viktor, along with his companions. They should still be there; he's busy tending to the upset graves."

Flik tried to digest the flood of information. Since he didn't speak, Apple asked the obvious question. "Isn't Neclord dead? Didn't Viktor kill him two years ago?"

"Neclord is a devious creature," Kahn replied. "He creates shadows of himself and flees the killing blow." The vampire hunter took a moment to drink in the size of the horde following Flik. "I don't think you're going to find food for that crowd in the ruins."

Flik shook his head. "There's little helping it. South Window has fallen to Highland."

Kahn clicked his tongue behind his teeth. "So the war has come this far south," he mused. "I wonder if it will reach west to Greenhill? That'll make my research much more difficult." He offered a gloved hand to Flik. "Well, may we both have good fortune in our travails. If luck is with me, I'll track down that hideous vampire. If so, I'll send a letter to Viktor. Who knows, all of us may end up working together."

Flik shook the offered hand. "I'm Flik. I hope you do track him down. Viktor and I will be glad to put an end to him, once and for all."

That said, Kahn continued on to the south while Flik led the mercenaries and refugees towards North Window. It was half an hour later when he and the first of the people behind him walked in past the tumbled walls. As they did so, he saw Viktor leading Riou, Nanami, Eilie, and Freed out towards the exit. There was a moment where the two groups stared at each other in mute recognition. Flik could hear the surf crashing against the thirty-foot cliffs at the north end of town.

Viktor frowned, understanding what Flik's presence here implied.

Nanami hadn't reached that point yet. Her eyes were wide, trying to see everything at once. "Eh?" she blurted. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Why is everyone here?"

"Rina!" Eilie shrieked, throwing herself into an embrace with her older sister. "What happened? You all look terrible." In a similar fashion, Nanami ran forward to take Pilika from Leona's care, hugging the little girl tightly.

"Yes, what happened to South Window?" Freed choked out, his tone suggesting that he was dreading the answer. Riou closed his eyes; he too seemed to already know what was coming.

Everyone else looked at Flik to provide the explanation, and he suddenly felt very uncomfortable in the direct sunlight. "I…" He had to stop, gather himself, and try again. "I'm sorry, but South Window has fallen to Highland."

Eilie squeaked in dismay, and Nanami held Pilika even tighter. Riou simply nodded, but his hands went to his tonfa. Freed paled and swayed, much as if he'd taken a shot to the stomach. He staggered a few halting steps towards Flik and pleaded, "Is it…really true? What of my Lord? Tell me that Lord Granmeyer still lives." He reached out and grabbed Flik by the arms, his eyes boring into Flik's face. "Please, tell me!"

He tried to struggle out of Freed's grasp, turning his head so that he didn't have to look Freed square in the face. "Solon Jhee," Flik answered, voice almost a whisper. "Solon Jhee killed your lord."

"No!" The anger in Freed's voice was terrible, causing Flik to flinch. Then Freed's face was broken by a sob. "It can't be." He could no longer control his tears, and sank down to his knees, letting go of Flik. "My Lord, what will become of us now?" That was the last coherent thing he spoke before his emotions overwhelmed him.

They watched him for a moment, no one making a move. "Let him be," Apple finally said. "He'll need time." Flik agreed with that sentiment; bitter personal experience had taught him that it was true.

Apple shook her head. "We've got lots of things that need to be done." With that, she set about organizing people. The strongest men, including Bolgan, Tsai, and Rikimaru, were sent off to clear rubble out of the main keep. Hanna, Anita, and Millie went to organize the children that had lost their parents. Barbara entered the main building as well, looking to see if there was anything useful in the storehouse. Kinnison, Gengen, and the wolf Shiro went as an escort. Viktor and Flik ordered their own men, sending a few of the most glib off in search of any nearby villages, with orders to negotiate for food and water.

After a while, the two of them ended up helping on the debris removal squad.

"I heard the monster was Neclord," Flik said, heaving a large chunk of rock towards the side of the entrance hall.

"It was," Viktor affirmed. "Damn beast, I thought I'd killed him for good two years ago."

"You underestimated him," a booming, bass voice announced. "It is one of your many flaws."

"His sword," Rina shrieked, "it talks!" She and her sister had just arrived with water for the workers.

Eilie laughed at her sister's unease. "Yeah, spooked me the first time, too. It's sort of cute, when you think about it."

"Cute?" the bass voice thundered.

Tsai squinted, muttering, "A most unusual weapon."

Flik wandered around to Viktor's back, trying to get a good look at the jet-black blade rattling around in the sheath. "Oh, it's you," he said, when he finally saw the glowering little face that resided at the joining of the blade and hilt.

It wasn't a particularly human looking face, with a wide mouth and a tiny, cleft chin. The face took on the look of utter outrage. "Is that all you have to say?" it demanded. "I…the Zodiac Sword, do not tolerate such insolence from my vassals." To emphasize this fact, the sword began sliding out of it's sheath under it's own power.

Alarmed, Viktor clamped both hands over the hilt. "Hey, Flik, let's not make him any angrier than he already is. He's a little…temperamental right now."

Flik asked the next question that popped into his head. "Zodiac Sword? Aren't you the Star Dragon Sword?"

Incredibly, the Star Dragon Sword looked abashed. "Yes…well, that's another one of my names," he answered, in a much quieter voice. "I shall permit you to refer to me as the Star Dragon Sword, if that suits your fancy."

Flik nodded. "So, Viktor obviously had to retrieve you in order to fight Neclord."

"That's correct, and I have every right to be angry," the sword declared, this time distinctly in a shout. "You left me to rot in the Cave of the Wind," he said to Viktor.

"I thought you needed a little break," Viktor replied, a bit nervously. "You know one of those…what's the word…um, a sabbatical. Yeah, that's exactly what you needed."

Flik grinned. "I thought your exact words were, 'Run like hell, Flik! I've finally managed to ditch that old windbag. I'll never have to listen to his griping again.'"

Dark energy began to coalesce around the sword. "Did you really say that?" the Star Dragon Sword thundered. "We'll see who's still able to gripe to whom after I'm done with you!"

The sword thrashed about on Viktor's back, jerking the large man back and forth across the room. However, Viktor retained his grip on the hilt, and managed to keep the sword from freeing itself. After a while, the sword stopped its convulsions. Viktor, panting, continued to keep both hands on the hilt, even as he said, "There's no reason to get so upset. Besides, if you killed me, who would you get to thump all those nasty vampires on the head?"

The Star Dragon Sword seemed to absorb this for a moment. "A point. Not much of a point, I'm sure any of these large men would serve just as well, but a point nonetheless. I'll let you live, for now. But know this: I'll pay you back for every slight. You'll wade through oceans of monsters before I'm done with you." Amazingly, the sword shifted its glare to Flik. "You will suffer too, blue peon. I am the Night Rune, and I know all of your hidden weaknesses. I'll teach you to know better than to let my servant handle me so."

Flik gulped, not sure how to respond to that threat. At that moment, Apple, Riou, and Nanami walked in. Freed, his face still very much white, shuffled after them. Leona and Pilika came in last.

"I'm sorry about Lord Granmeyer," Flik said, wondering if that would be an consolation to the stricken aide.

"I want to-" Freed hesitated, warring internally with himself. He came to some sort of decision, shifted his posture upright, and continued. "I want to hear how it happened. All of it."

Apple looked around at the mess. "Not in this room," she declared. "Viktor, do you know of a place where we could gather and talk about this, away from everyone else?"

"I think there's a room just above us." Viktor pointed to the stairs at the end of the great hall. "I remember that the militia commanders used to gather up there."

"That's a good place," Apple replied. "Lead on."

Viktor stepped over some of the strewn junk and walked towards the far stairs. Flik could hear everyone's footfalls echoing off the stone. The staircase ascended up to a large landing that turned to the left. Evening was creeping into the sky outside, and two slit windows served to choke off most of that light. There was an empty torch bracket between the two windows.

The landing opened through a large portal into a fairly substantial corridor. Not that Flik saw much of it; he simply gauged it by the way the sound bounced around in the darkness. There was also a lot of dust. People started hacking and coughing on it. Flik collided with somebody. By his bulk, it had to Bolgan.

"Maybe somebody should go and get a light?" Apple asked.

"Nah, just a little farther," Viktor replied.

It seemed he was right, for Flik could see the outline of a doorway and light beyond. A moment later he stepped into a large room, with a bank of windows off to his right which let in the red glare of evening. He also noted a long, slightly raised dais to the left.

The group gathered in a rough horseshoe, people glancing nervously at each other. Nobody seemed to want to begin. Finally, Freed took a breath and said, "Tell me exactly what happened."

"Yes," Flik replied, but held off for just a moment, trying to read Freed's expression. Also, he needed that moment to swallow his own feelings about the events. "After you left, things got interesting. The mercenaries showed up, followed by Solon Jhee and the Second Highland Army. Lord Granmeyer must have judged that the Jowston Alliance wouldn't come to his rescue, and that he couldn't stand on his own, so he surrendered without fighting." Flik steadied himself, keeping his voice neutral. "They cut off his head; it was hanging on the gate this very morning. We got away using the crowds to hide us. Even so, it was a narrow thing; I thought for sure that Culgan was going to ride us down."

Rina laughed languidly. "Yes, and who should you thank for getting you out of that situation?"

"Quiet," Flik's mouth snapped, before he'd thought about an answer. He nearly slapped himself at his own rudeness, but he didn't want Viktor rubbing that in all night. Flik glanced over at his friend and saw the knowing smile that confirmed that he had registered the whole exchange. Rina arched an eyebrow and smirked, apparently letting the discourtesy slide, or maybe storing it away for another time.

Flik resolved to thank her…later, when fewer people were watching to embarrass him about it. He continued the story. "Anyway, after we got away, we decided to come to North Window. It seemed to be the safest place for now."

Freed was upset again, sniffing loudly. "My city," he moaned. "My Lord…"

Apple clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. "As distressing a time as this is, we need to think about our next move. Highland will be moving to squelch any rebellion before it gets started. They'll be drafting South Window soldiers into their forces, and arresting anyone who resists. The question is; what do we want to do about it?"

Viktor took a few steps towards the window, the harsh light casting his shadow, twisted and enlarged, on the far wall. "It's only a matter of time before the Highland Army occupies this place as well. All we've got are the men and this abandoned old castle. What can we do?"

No one spoke. Time seemed to slow, and Flik heard his own heartbeats thudding in his ears. Standing against the might of Highland seemed like suicide, but fleeing wasn't much of an option either. Where would they go? Was Two River willing to fight? Was Greenhill able? Would Matilda or Tinto even intercede to save the Alliance? He didn't even want to think about retreating to the Toran Republic, because that would be very much like surrendering all of Jowston to the enemy. Viktor would never stand for it.

Suddenly Riou answered, his clear voice shattering the silence with its pure confidence. "We should fight. There must be a way."

Nanami, of all people, frowned noticeably her brother's boldness. She clutched Pilika tightly to her side.

All eyes were suddenly on the young man. "Riou," Viktor said, trying to make an argument, but he stopped with just that word said.

"Can we stop the whole Highland Army?" Flik asked. "Think about it logically. They'll outnumber us in any fight, possibly by as much as ten to one. Maybe more."

Eilie glared at Flik, silencing him, and walked forward to stand next to Riou. "When did all of you become such cowards? Is flight the only thing running through your heads? What about all those stories where the hero's outnumbered army triumphs over the bad guys? Riou is right! We have to find a way to win. We have to!"

Flik wanted to remind her that the stories were simply that, but memories of the Liberation Army flashed through his mind, putting the lie to that point.

"Fighting for its own sake, especially when there is no chance of winning, is the height of folly," Tsai responded, frowning.

Apple walked out into the center of the group, light glaring off her glasses as she turned and faced Riou. "There is a chance," she declared.

"You think so?" Viktor asked. "How?"

"As Master Mathiu would say, 'When an inferior force is confronted by a superior force, a sound strategy is the key to survival.'" She smiled. "The strategist must dictate the battle such that the strengths of the inferior force are matched against the weaknesses of the superior force. This is how victory is achieved."

Viktor grinned, flexing his hands into wrists. "That's great. What's your strategy then?"

"I don't have one," Apple averred, which caused everyone in the room to look at her, startled. There was a tightness to her smile as she continued. "I've learned the hard way that I'm not able to see all the permutations in a battle. But I know someone who can see that deeply. Someone who won't make the mistakes that I have." She swallowed and almost reached up to clean her glasses, but blushed and said. "His name is Shu, a speculator in trade goods who now lives in Radat. He and I studied under the Master, but he was expelled." She gritted her teeth in frustration at her own babbling. "Never mind that! He's a spectacular strategist, nearly as good as the Master. We'll need his foresight if we are to win the next battle."

Flik looked from Apple to Riou, noting the determination in their eyes. It was infectious, filling his heart and making him smile. "All right. We can't allow Highland to keep pushing us around, or they'll run us right off the edge of the earth."

Bolgan whooped and jumped up, both impressively large actions for a man of his girth. "That's right," he said gleefully. "That's right."

Viktor made a much more modest nod. "Good. We'll all do our best to drive Highland back." He looked at Flik. "You and I should focus on training troops and gathering new recruits. Hopefully some of these people from South Window will still want to fight." He turned towards Apple, Eilie, and Riou. "As for this Shu, that's your responsibility, Apple. You and Riou figure out some way to get him to join us."

Apple also looked at Riou. "This is critical. We must get him if we are to continue fighting. I'll come with you; between us, we should be able to convince him."

Nanami, after a moment of deliberation, chimed in, "I'm going too." Her earlier unease about her brother's actions seemed to have been set aside.

Leona, who'd been sitting on the steps of the dais, stood up and said, "Don't worry about Pilika. I can keep an eye on her."

Nanami finally released her grip on the younger girl, guiding her over to Leona's side. "Thank you, Leona." Then she walked back to the group, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Hey, Apple, is this strategist of yours good looking?" she asked.

Apple blushed fiercely. "I wouldn't know anything about that!" she replied. "It was a long time ago. Who knows how he looks now?" She waved her hands in a warding motion. "We'll leave first thing tomorrow morning. If we're lucky, this whole thing won't take more than five days."

Suddenly footsteps echoed from the outer corridor. Flik was about to reach for his sword, but stopped when he saw who burst into the room. "This is where you all went to," Gilbert declared. "I've searched this whole castle looking for everybody." He took a few hasty breaths and asked, "So, did I miss anything important?"

Nighttime followed soon thereafter. Barbara had located a few usable beds and had them hauled to the large hall on the first floor. The women promptly appropriated every one of them and hustled the men right out of the room.

Even with the darkness, Flik found that he was too restless to sleep. After a while, he got up and wandered rather aimlessly, letting his feet carry him down empty passages. The pale light of the gibbous Blue Moon, which was rising in the distant east, shined in narrow strips through the windows. In the areas without that light, he made his way by feeling along the walls.

Eventually his legs carried him up a set of stairs, into a much larger room. Several windows let in the moonlight, and Flik could see that this part of the castle was in ruins. The walls that had divided rooms had fallen into decay and there were several holes in the flooring. The thought occurred to him that this place was not going to be much fun if it came to rain.

Carefully he crossed this room, making his way to another set of stairs. Like everything else, it was run down, and Flik had to watch every step so that he didn't slip on a loose stone or get stuck in a hole. The stairs went up into a tower, and he climbed all the way to the landing at the top.

The roof of the tower was fallen in, but the platform itself seemed solid enough. Flik paced about, drinking in the view from high over North Window. The Blue Moon was up higher, its light brighter as it rippled and reflected off the surface of Lake Dunan. Countless stars glittered in the night sky, their glory unmarred by any clouds. Below, more than one hundred feet down, waves crashed against the ruins of a harbor facility. There was a refreshing wind off the water, snatching slightly at his cape, smelling just a little of salty tang.

He heard the scuff of a boot against stone, and Flik turned around in time to see Viktor heaving himself up the last couple of steps. "I figured you'd probably go for the most secluded spot in the place," Viktor said. Flik shrugged. Viktor had a bottle of some sort of wine in his right hand. "Barbara found a couple of these laid away in the storehouse. I was going to drink them all myself, but then I thought about you. Just goes to show what a good friend I am." He tested part of the roof for sturdiness and leaned on it, looking up at the sky. Flik mimicked him.

A moment later, Viktor pulled the cork out of the bottle and took a swig. He coughed, gagged, and spat much of the drink back out into the night air.

"That bad?" Flik asked.

"It's awful," Viktor confirmed. "But it's still alcohol." He offered the bottle to Flik. "Here, have a taste."

Flik did; the bouquet was of dust and vinegar. He struggled to keep it down.

Viktor smiled wanly. "Told you. Here, let me have it back." He grabbed the bottle and took another healthy draw. They passed the bottle back and forth a couple more times before Viktor swallowed the dregs. Afterwards, looking up at the stars, he said, "You know, I lived here all of my childhood and never went up to the top of this tower." He paused. "I didn't really think I'd every be back here. It's strange; if Neclord hadn't destroyed my hometown, I probably never would have left. I'd have settled down, married…"

There was a longer pause, long enough that Flik looked over to see if Viktor would continue.

Viktor did. "Anyway, I'd never have participated in the Liberation War. Heck, I'd probably just be some militia captain trying his hardest to figure out how to defend my hometown against Highland."

Flik laughed. "Instead, you're a mercenary captain trying his hardest to figure out how to defend his hometown against Highland."

Viktor also laughed, but it was more somber. "Sure, but I've seen so much more of the world than I'd ever dreamed I would. And made better friends than I'd ever hoped to."

They didn't say much more after that, but simply watched the stars in their imperceptible dance. The Blue Moon crossed overhead and the Scarlet Moon, waxing towards half-full, rose out of the eastern depths. For a time, they were just two old friends, alone under the sky, and the concerns of war receded into the far distance.


	25. Chapter 25 When the Wind Shifts

**Chapter 25 – When the Wind Shifts**

_In Solis 460, Soulsdei, the 17th of Mai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I'll thank the spirits of the great heroes and the True Runes for each day that Highland gives us to recover. Due to the way North Window was abandoned, nobody ever had a chance to loot the armory. Because of that, we've managed to scrounge up enough weapons to equip everyone, even if some of those weapons have seen better days. The official roll, including Viktor's Mercenary Army and Gilbert's Zexens, is now slightly above two thousand men. In fact, it's likely that today we'll see a couple hundred more who want to join._

_If only they had the training and experience to go with their enthusiasm. Still, we're in better shape than four days ago. Now if only Barbara would go and find a bed for me to sleep on. I don't fancy continuing to sleep on the floor in the bar. The truth is that it's been too hot to sleep there anyway. I tend to spend my nights up in the tower._

_Yesterday some of my men got in contact with a horse merchant who's displaced from East Muse, so I'm hoping that we'll be able to get some horses today. With that, I'll feel like a warrior again._

_I hope Apple returns with that strategist soon. I don't feel that Highland is going to give us much more time._

Flik looked up from his writing, wiping his sweaty hand across his sweaty brow. The weather was still sweltering, even with the lake breeze. He grumbled when a few stray drops pattered down on his diary, smudging the ink a little. Leaving the book open, he got up from his table in the bar, which also served as the temporary living quarters for him, Viktor, Gilbert, and Tsai. No one else was here though. He'd taken a break while the others were busy training troops.

Suddenly he heard cheering from outside. Curious, he made his way towards the exit, but had to nimbly jump aside when Viktor crashed through the door, excitement on his face. "There you are," he shouted. "I was just coming to get you; your transportation has arrived."

Flik heard the neighing of horses interspersed with the cheering. Stepping outside, he found Viktor's words to be true. The mercenaries were already driving the horses towards the stalls and ring that they'd spent the last three days repairing. Flik's horsemen, in particular, looked elated to have horses again.

As they were watching, Rossgard and a shifty-looking smaller man approached. The stranger's clothes were well-to-do, though somewhat dusty and slightly in ill repair. The stranger swept off a wide-brimmed hat, revealing dirty blond hair that was slightly disheveled, and said, "I am Clarence Hamfast, from East Muse. It's a pleasure doing business with you all. It'll be even more of a pleasure to see you and your men driving those Highlanders back where they came from."

Flik noted the man's greasy countenance. He sighed. "Pardon me for getting to the point, but how much is 'doing business with you' going to cost us?"

Clarence Hamfast's smile didn't slip in the least, though he did rub his hands together. "Oh nothing at all…nothing, really." He looked at Rossgard. "Why don't you tell your commanders what we settled on?"

Rossgard coughed. "Yes. He's giving us the horses for free."

"For free?" Viktor exclaimed incredulously. Flik didn't blame him; he was too busy trying to get his own jaw back into position.

"For free," Rossgard nodded. "All he wants in return is for you to grant him a permanent tax exemption for future business here."

That got the wheels in Flik's head going. With that kind of document in hand, this merchant would stand to make a lot of money in the long run. Of course, this meant that the man had faith that Viktor and Flik could win this war. It was rather touching and also fiendishly greedy. Flik looked at Viktor. "Do we have that kind of authority?"

Viktor shrugged. "We might as well. Let somebody in the future figure out what it means." Clarence Hamfast positively beamed. He, Viktor, and Rossgard went inside to work over the document. Flik went for the horses.

Men were racing to the stalls, carrying tack slung over their shoulders and under their arms. But nobody had claimed any of the horses yet. Tarrance handed Flik a set of tack and said, "I think the first choice should be yours, sir." The men around him nodded.

Flik walked into the stables. He'd watched people go through elaborate rituals when trying to pick out a horse. Some would grab a staff and walk in the direction it fell. Others would flip potch into the air and see where it rolled. He did none of that. He walked to the first horse that caught his eye and began examining it. After a few minutes, he rejected it, deciding that its back was too broad for him.

He continued past several more stalls, until he stopped in front of a graceful black horse with a white star high on its forehead, partially obscured by some of the mane. He opened the stall to check this horse. It was a mare, somewhat slenderer than the previous horse, but showing no signs of ill use. He examined the eyes, teeth, and then the hooves. The horse reached around to try and snap at him while he was checking the right rear hoof, but the action seemed playful, not in earnest.

Flik went forward and stroked the horse's mane, clearing it away from the star. Now was the moment of truth. He waved to his men to bring the saddle and bridle. The horse tossed her head slightly, but accepted the equipment. Then he mounted.

The first thing he found was that the stirrups were too long. They'd been adjusted for a man to stand in them while carrying a spear. Flik felt as if he was going to sink into the saddle. He dismounted and worked at the stirrups. The horse swished her tail to drive off some flies. Once he was done with the adjustments, Flik remounted and walked the horse out to the ring.

Ignoring the calls of his men to put her into a gallop and leap the fence, he worked her up through a trot and canter, feeling how she responded to his commands. This horse was well trained, in fact slightly more responsive than he was used to. Still, she did not seem to be a bad horse, so Flik was inclined to keep her. Walking beside the railing towards the stalls, he came across Millie, Eilie, and Rina, who'd been watching him.

Rina laughed carelessly. "You seem to be pretty good on horseback. Can you do any tricks, or dressage?"

Flik shook his head. "No, nothing like that. All I ever learned was how to fight from horseback."

Millie spoke. "What are you going to call it?"

"Her, actually," Flik responded and then continued, "As for naming; I don't know. I've never really named any of the horses I've ridden."

"You name your sword, but not your horse?" Rina asked.

"The sword naming is a sacred ritual," Flik answered. "Besides, I don't think I'd want to name something that might die in battle."

Eilie, meanwhile, had reached out to pet the horse's nose. The horse shifted her head ever so slightly and made a playful nip at Eilie's hand. Eilie shrieked, lost her grip on the fence, and tumbled over backwards. Rina jumped down to check her sister.

"But you've got to name her," Millie declared. "She's so beautiful! She deserves a good name."

Flik looked down at his horse's head. She canted her head to the side slightly, possibly looking back at him. The white star on her black forehead stood out, so he said, "I'll call her Nightstar. How about that?"

Millie clapped her hands, which nearly caused her to slip off the fence. When she recovered her balance, she replied, "It's a great name. See, that wasn't so hard."

Flik shrugged, and walked Nightstar towards the stalls. He couldn't shake the feeling that he'd just doomed this horse…or maybe saved her.

Now that their commander had chosen a mount, the rest of Flik's men began the same process, showing only a little deference for the sergeants and senior sergeants. Inevitably, there were some difficulties. A handful of the horses turned out to be unusable: broken down, temperamental, or just not trained to be ridden in battle situations. Also, a few of the new recruits who had boasted about their riding abilities turned out to be worth less than a load of bricks once they got up on horseback. Even so, once everybody had their primary mounts, the remounts had been picked, and the unworthy -among men and horses- had been weeded out, Flik had a formation of slightly more than four hundred men.

As his men were settling the horses in for the evening, he called the four senior sergeants -Rossgard, Tarrance, Jerrim, and Danel- over.

"Congratulations," Flik announced. "We now have enough men for each of you to lead a full company, as is commensurate with your rank."

"A whole lot of them don't have any idea what they're getting into," Tarrance added. "How are we going to work them in?"

Rossgard nodded. "The captain and I were working this out the other day. I believe it's best if we keep the old squads but match them one by one with new squads, and build up the companies that way."

"Mr. Rossgard! Mr. Rossgard!" a little girl's voice cried. The conversation stopped as the five men turned to see a little girl, maybe eight years old, running towards them, black hair streaming in her own wind. She was followed by her younger brother, who had shorter black hair. Flik had never seen her before, but she jumped to hug Rossgard and said, "Here you are. Mommy said she wanted to talk to you again."

"What's this?" Flik asked.

Rossgard grunted as the little boy also clambered into a hug. He managed to heft both children in his arms. "This is Allaria," the little girl beamed proudly, "and that is Tam." The boy seemed overawed by the crowd. "They were separated from their mother during the flight, and I helped them find her."

Tarrance chuckled. "Ah. Worked out happily for everyone, I see."

Rossgard frowned. "I'm not sure what you mean. Their father was an official for Granmeyer. Their mother, Ellani, was heartbroken when she heard the news about what happened."

"I see," Flik answered. "Well, go ahead and talk to her, then. Just remember that I'm planning morning exercises and a patrol. That's all; you're all dismissed."

Rossgard lifted the boy onto his shoulders and walked back towards the refugee camp, Allaria holding his hand. Tarrance whistled softly and said, "Who'd have thought old Rossgard could move so quickly? If the children are any indication, the mother's probably gorgeous." Jerrim and Danel nodded appreciatively. Flik began walking back towards the castle, but he hadn't gone too far when he heard Tarrance's next comment. "Now that Rossgard's taken care of, we've got to find a nice lady for the captain." Flik didn't wait around to hear what would come of that.

The following morning marked a change in the weather. The hot south winds had departed, replaced by more moderate west winds, which ushered in fluffy cumulous clouds. Flik put his horse archers through a series of drills, having them maneuver by squad, by half-company, by full company, and then with the entire formation as one unit. They went about as well as could be expected, which was not very good. The raw recruits were not up to military discipline yet.

After a late morning break to eat, Flik led the whole unit out on a patrol. It would be a good chance for the senior sergeants to practice commanding their full companies during campaign conditions. It would also be a good opportunity to test the endurance of the new horses. In both regards, Flik was pleasantly surprised. The senior sergeants responded without difficulty when he sent messengers with changes in the orders. The horses too stood up to the challenge of the patrol. Nightstar seemed to be in good spirits.

Thus, Flik felt more optimistic than he had in a while as the sun began to drift off to the west. He sent out messengers to call the companies back into marching order. He was standing on small hill beside the road, watching as Rossgard's company reformed, when he saw a messenger galloping in from Danel's position.

Worry immediately creased Flik's forehead. Unscheduled messengers usually meant bad news. It might be nothing more than somebody slipping off a horse and breaking a bone. Somehow, he didn't think that's what it would be. He began to chew the inside of his lip, willing the horseman to get to him.

The man did, reining in his horse in front of Flik. The messenger snapped off a quick salute and reported, "Sir, Danel reports spotting soldiers marching up the road towards North Window. They march under the flags of Highland and South Window."

Rossgard had come up the hill to hear the news. Flik spoke to him. "Send a messenger off to Viktor with that news. Then lead your company, along with Jerrim's and Tarrance's, back. I'm going forward to look for myself."

He trotted Nightstar down the hill with the messenger following close behind. The company was situated in a line of forested ridges to the south. When Flik got there, Danel pointed towards a spot on the road two miles to the south. "You can see them there, sir. When the wind shifts the dust a little, you can make out the individual flags."

Flik put a hand up over his eyes and squinted. The leading companies were mounted archers wearing Highland white and blue. The formation was fanned out in an arc around the marching column, scouts sweeping the countryside. That was certain to be Culgan's command. Not too far back in the line were the flags of many South Window companies. Flik judged there to be at least two or three thousand men under those banners. The rest of the column was obscured by dust, but it seemed to stretch out over many miles of road.

He turned back to Danel. "How many?"

The sergeant frowned. "I sent a couple of the men forward. Not all of them came back. I'd say at least a full army, ten thousand, maybe more."

Flik kept his face calm, though he felt like swaying out of the saddle. "We're not going to stop them here," he said. "Gather your men; we're returning to North Window at once."

He brooded all the way back to the town. The odds just didn't look very good. Still, he kept the urge to flee contained tightly in his stomach. He might save himself by running, might even save a part of the army, but it would mean abandoning all the people that followed him to North Window. No, he'd stay and accept the consequences of his actions.

When he rode through the road leading into the town, Flik could see people feverishly working on the walls, rolling stones into place, hefting them into gaps. He was inclined to think that the effort was futile, but resisted saying that. After all, the more the work kept people from thinking too much about the impending battle, the better.

Rossgard, who had arrived before him, walked up and greeted his commander with, "Sir, I gave your message to Viktor. He's called a meeting in the second floor room. Oh, Riou and Lady Apple have returned."

Flik dismounted, giving the reins to one of his men. "Do you know if they returned with the strategist?" he asked.

"No idea, sir."

"I guess I'll find out," Flik replied. Dismissing Rossgard, Flik walked down the path leading towards the castle. Mercenaries and civilians were rushing about, carrying loads of weapons and supplies. However, they did not seem to be panicked. Most of them were doing their jobs with a fierce determination. He couldn't help but feel a little better just watching them.

He made his way up the stairs to the second floor and found two new additions. One of those new additions was an impressively muscled woman. Her red hair fell to the base of her neck and her bangs covered her entire forehead. She wore a red leotard under a beige top. The top connected down to two beige pieces that -except for wide slits that ran up to her hips- covered her legs. Flik also noted that she seemed to be wearing a multiplicity of belts, including one as a choker around her neck.

The other addition was tame in comparison, simply a journeyman crystal. Flik knew that they could be found in many places throughout the world. It was said that an order of travelling monks tended to them and set them up. People in all the countries that Flik had seen felt a special devotion to the little blue orb that sat on its pillar. They would say prayers over it before setting out on a journey, hoping for a blessing or protection on the way.

The woman glowered down at Flik, her red heels making her slightly taller than him. "You must be Flik," she said tersely. "You're just as blue as they described. You may go in." She stepped out of his way.

Flik couldn't help but feel a little intimidated by her demeanor. "You're new," he babbled. "Who are you?"

The faintest hint of a smile crossed her face. "My name is Oulan. I have become Master Riou's bodyguard. That is all you need to know."

That was all Flik needed to know. He walked past her into the room. As his eyes adjusted to the glare of the sun through the western windows, he could see that the room was crowded. Viktor was speaking with Freed and Tsai over by the dais. Bolgan, Rina, and Eilie were in the center of the room. Leona and Pilika sat on the steps of the dais. Even Gilbert was there, lounging by himself in the far corner of the room. Viktor laughed and waved Flik over to where he was standing.

"So, what do you think about that red headed chick that Riou brought back?" Viktor asked. "All I can say is, he's got a real way with the ladies."

Flik didn't get a chance to respond, for Apple, Riou, and Nanami walked into the room at that moment, and all of the conversations quieted. Nanami immediately ran ahead, gathering Pilika into a hug. Riou and Apple hung back as everyone gathered around them. Well, everyone except Gilbert, who remained unobtrusively in the back corner.

Viktor spoke first, turning to Apple. "We're all glad that you made it safely back. I wish we had more time for pleasantries, but you know the situation we're in by now. So, I'll just ask: how did it go? Is this strategist of yours going to work with us?"

Apple looked nervous at the gravity of the situation. "Shu promised he was going to help us. He will arrive in time."

Viktor did not look convinced. "I don't like this very much; banking everything on whether this man is going to show up. Is he really that trustworthy? You said Mathiu expelled him, right?"

"If you cannot give me your trust," a calm but confident voice said, "then you might as well depart." Flik looked towards the entrance to the room, peripherally aware that everyone else was doing the same thing. A man of around Flik's own age, with black hair that ran down his neck, was walking into the room. His steps were graceful and assured. His clothing was simple, but elegant. He wore a sleeved, dark brown mantle, short red scarf, a long white and pale blue dress coat, and white pants. The features of his face were distinct: inward-slanting eyebrows led to a sharp nose.

He turned his head slowly, deliberately, reading each person in the room until his eyes fell on Viktor. He took two steps and stood almost chest to chest with the larger man.

Apple smiled, trying to defuse the tension. "Shu! Your arrival is most timely."

Shu put a hand up to silence her, an even expression on his face. "I understand the situation, and I know how much I have to do, so I came as quickly as I was able. I had to cancel numerous lucrative trade meetings, and I rode three horses into the ground all so I could arrive ahead of the Highland Army." He rounded back on Viktor, who reflexively took a step away. Shu immediately closed the space. "You!" He glared up into Viktor's face. "Big loud guy! You're Viktor, right?"

Even though Viktor could easily have lifted Shu right off the ground, his face suggested that he was losing the battle of wills. "Yeah…that's me," he answered warily.

"Listen up, all of you." Shu spoke curtly, not letting anyone interrupt him. "I came here to help you defeat the Highland Army. My strategies are the only things that will allow you to do this. Follow my orders to the letter, and we will win. Don't and all you will do is be defeated." He paused to allow this to sink in and then continued. "I am the strategist, I expect my subordinates to have faith in my plans." His voice, though never wavering from being calm, turned decidedly cold. "If you can't do that, then you're nothing but an obstacle to victory. I would suggest that anyone like that leave. Now." He walked away from Viktor, moving into the center of the group.

In the silence that followed, Flik took a moment to search his soul. He wanted to win. Was he willing to follow this man's orders?

Viktor spoke, his voice just a little too light to be natural. "Hey Apple, now I see why Mathiu had him expelled."

Shu glanced back at Viktor, who immediately shut up. He then walked in Flik's direction. Foreboding grew in Flik's heart with each step the strategist took. Standing before Flik, Shu said, "You, Blue-boy."

"Careful there," Flik muttered.

Shu locked eyes with him. "When you've fought as well for me as you did for Mathiu, then you'll have earned my respect, Flik of the Blue Lightning. Now, tell me how many soldiers we have."

Flik worked the figures in his head. "Counting our mercenaries, Gilbert's unit, the South Window soldiers that are fighting with us, and the civilian recruits, we've got a little more than two thousand under arms. Plus this run down castle." He looked at Shu, feeling just a little streak of defiance rising in his core. "The Highland Army, on the other hand, was at least twenty thousand soldiers when it began the invasion of Jowston. Now they've drafted South Window soldiers into their force."

Flik expected a little anger or maybe even a snappy comeback out of Shu, but instead the strategist simply smiled and said, "I've got a plan." He paced towards the windows along the west wall, speaking softly, almost to himself. "If I remember the histories, this castle has served as a rallying point in many previous wars against both Scarlet Moon and Highland. Two thousand soldiers should be enough."

He stopped at the windows, turned, and said aloud, "Highland's army may number twenty thousand, but much of that is tied down in garrison duty or stuck across Lake Dunan because of lack of shipping. In truth, the force that we'll face tomorrow will only be ten thousand. Moreover, one third of that force is under the banners of South Window. I am certain that they do not truly wish to fight for Highland. With the right inducement, we could get them to fight on our side. Then it would be only five thousand against seven thousand. Those are much better odds, don't you agree?"

Viktor rubbed his forehead. "Impressive. The way you say it, I think we might actually have a chance. What do you want us to do?"

Shu pointed at Freed. "You, Freed."

Freed shuffled his feet nervously. "Yes, sir?"

"Which South Window units do you think are marching with Highland?"

Freed thought for a moment and answered, "Probably the South Window City Guards, sir. Those are the units that they'd be able to round up the fastest."

Shu nodded. "I agree. You would know the commanders of those units. I want you to infiltrate the South Window forces and tell the men that Highland plans to execute them after the fighting is done. Based on what was done to Lord Granmeyer, I know that the rumor will stick."

Freed snapped a salute. "Yes, sir!"

Shu continued giving orders. "Flik, Viktor, and Gilbert, your units will deploy in front of the town. This plan relies on you buying us some time."

Viktor interrupted. "I don't understand. We're not expecting any reinforcements, and I don't think Freed's rumors alone will be enough to get the South Window units to come to our side."

Shu glanced once at Viktor and said, "The enemy general is Solon Jhee. In battle his actions are guided by emotion and, thus, are predictable. When he believes things are going well, he's too confident and will rush into any fight. When things turn against him, he gets too cautious and will retreat even when he has the advantage. If we have a small unit launch a flank attack against his personal unit, it will rattle him. In the confusion, we'll call for the South Window troops to change sides. Then the battle will be ours."

"Wait, wait," Flik replied. "This is a peninsula, there's water on three sides. How are we going to get a unit around on the flank?"

Shu laughed, starling Flik. "A very predictable question. I'll tell you how. The Highland Army is built for land battles. They think in terms of marching routes, supply lines, and obstacles. To them, the water is just another barrier, one that they think will protect their flanks. To me, the lake is no more than another road. As long as we have the right means to travel it, the water will take us anywhere we wish to be. I'll have some men go and negotiate for boats. We won't need anything elaborate to do this."

Tsai spoke next, an amazed expression on his face. "You seem to have thought of everything. I honestly believe that we'll be able to win."

Bolgan clapped his large hands loudly, adding his two potch. "We'll win! We'll win!" Eilie and Rina nodded agreement. From the corner, Gilbert also signaled his confidence in the strategist, inclining his head slightly.

Viktor and Flik looked at each other. It seemed that everybody else believed in Shu, so Flik nodded as well. Viktor looked at Shu and said, "Fine. I'll give you a chance to show us if your strategies mean anything."

Shu continued to smile. "That's all I ask of you."

Flik asked a question he'd been thinking about since Shu had explained the plan. "Who's going to lead the attack against Solon Jhee. Viktor or I could do it."

Shu shook his head. "No. I need you two to defend the town tomorrow. The crucial role must fall to someone else." Deliberately, Shu turned and walked the few steps between him and the person he had in mind.

Flik's first thought was surprise, but that immediately subsided into…acceptance. _How strange,_ he wondered. _That I so readily yield control over my destiny to the person I least expected, again._

Riou, the person that Shu was now standing next to, answered, "Okay."

Nanami crossed her arms, displeasure evident on her face. She seemed to be wavering between glaring at her brother and glaring at the strategist.

Shu placed a hand on Riou's shoulder, looking down at the young man. "You are now the key to all of our hopes, Riou. Everything depends on your actions." He brought his gaze up, encompassing the entire room. "Everyone, I'll expect your best tomorrow. I think we are just about done here." He pointed to Freed again. "We'll need to work out exactly what you're going to say."

"For the memory of Lord Granmeyer!" Freed shouted. "For the honor and people of South Window! I'll fight Highland with every drop of my strength."

Shu nodded. "Good. The rest of you, prepare to protect the castle. We'll go over actual deployments tomorrow. Apple, your job will be to pick three hundred men to form Riou's strike unit."

Apple was smiling and looked as though a tremendous weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "Yes, sir!"

Viktor grinned. "It'll be nice to be victorious again."

"Only if you don't mess up," Flik countered.

Tsai frowned. "Don't speak like that. If we lose here, we won't get a second chance."

Shu smiled modestly. "Don't worry about defeat. It won't happen."


	26. Chapter 26 Fulfilled His Duty

**Chapter 26 – Fulfilled His Duty**

The night was chilly. There was no hot southern wind or any clouds to trap the heat. There was nothing between Flik and the stars of the night sky as he stood at the top of his tower. However, his eyes were focused not up but out to the south, where he could see the watch fires of the Highland Army. Little dots of flame spread out over the extent of the peninsula, staggered from the lake in the west to the river in the east. It seemed to Flik to be much like a net, holding the beleaguered resistance at bay until the final blow could be struck.

He looked down, slowly checking each piece of equipment for the coming battle. His shield was showing more wear, full of notches where he'd parried swords and spears. His cape, though cleaned in Muse, was now dirty again, the lower left corner fraying from disrepair. Flik pulled out his sword, let it gleam in the dim light of the two moons. It at least did not have any flaws.

Flik tensed; someone was coming up the stairs of the tower. The steps were too light for Viktor, but it was still a surprise when Shu leapt up the last few steps to stand face to face with Flik.

The strategist took a few deep breaths before declaring, "You really ought to find a less out-of-the-way location for your nightly ruminations."

Flik looked at Shu evenly. "I like it up here. It's peaceful."

Shu matched Flik's calm. "Peaceful or not, you make it difficult for me to find my chief cavalry commander and give him his orders."

Flik couldn't help but be interested now. "Orders? What orders?"

Shu smiled grimly. "The Highland Army will march out to battle in a few hours, probably three or four, just as the sun comes up. I need confirmation of their battle line. Take some of your scouts out and try to get that information."

Flik studied Shu a little more closely. He was still wearing the same clothes he'd arrived in, but he looked somewhat more disheveled. "Have you slept tonight?" Flik asked. "Are you going to be ready for the battle?"

"I don't see how that's germane," Shu answered. "However, no, I have not slept tonight. I've been much too busy making sure that we have enough boats for the plan and navigators skilled enough to get them where they need to be. As for your second question, Yes, I will be ready for the battle. I might ask the same of you."

"I did sleep earlier," Flik responded. "Or at least I tried to. It's not much of a night for sleeping, anyway."

Shu nodded. "In that, we agree. Now see to your men. Also I've scheduled a briefing for an hour before dawn. Try not to be late; we execute the plan as soon as the meeting is finished." Without any further words, he turned and started down the stairs.

Flik waited just a moment before he went down as well. Despite the early hour, the castle was not at all quiet. People seemed to be too nervous to sleep much this night. In fact, the only person who was surely asleep was Viktor, his loud snores audible from several rooms away.

Outside of the castle, Flik made his way into the ruins of the town. His men had billeted themselves in one neighborhood, taking abandoned houses as their sleeping quarters. In the house serving as the headquarters, he found that Jerrim had drawn duty for the watch before dawn.

The senior sergeant jumped to attention when Flik entered. "Is it time to go already?"

"Easy there," Flik chided. "It's not time yet. Our strategist wants a last minute scouting of the enemy lines. Take half a company and give me a report on units and positions. Send it up to the hall on the second floor. That's probably where I'll be by the time you return."

"Sir," Jerrim said and departed to gather the soldiers.

Flik took his time returning to the castle. He was too anxious to try and rest before things got busy. As he walked along the southern wall, he saw a group of boys climbing up to the top.

Casually he strode over to the wall and asked, "What are you doing?"

They glanced back, startled. The younger boys looked ready to scatter, but their leader, a youth maybe thirteen or fourteen years old, said, "We're just looking, that's all."

Flik shrugged. "Mind if I join you?" Nobody answered, so he took that to be a positive answer and hauled himself up to the top of the wall. Though not as impressive as from the tower, even on the wall Flik could see that the Highland campfires stretched across the horizon from west to east. After he'd looked, Flik said, "So, what do you think? It's sort of frightening, isn't it?"

"I'm not afraid," the leader replied vehemently. "Not at all, they're just stupid Highland soldiers."

Flik fought down the urge to laugh. "Your bravery is commendable," he responded. "What about the rest of you?" He looked from face to face.

None of them were able to meet his eyes. Finally, the youngest, a nine year old, said, "I'm afraid. They burned down my home, and they've chased me everywhere I've run, and I haven't seen my parents in nearly forever. And now there isn't anywhere left to go. So, yeah, I'm scared."

Flik smiled. "It's okay to be scared." He knelt down so he was face to face with the youngest boy. "I'll let you in on a secret. I'm a little afraid too, and I have to go and fight them."

"If you're so afraid," the leader retorted, "why do you fight? Why don't you run away?"

Flik shook his head. "No, I could never run. I'd be abandoning my duties if I did that."

"I don't understand," the oldest boy said.

"Well, we all have responsibilities," Flik explained. "Things that we have to do, no matter how much we might dislike them, because we accepted those duties. What about you?" He looked at the leader of the boys. "You're looking out for all of these kids, right?"

"Yeah," he answered shakily. "We're all from Toto, and none of us know where our parents are. So, I've got to take care of them."

Nodding, Flik said, "And you wouldn't leave them, would you?"

"No way!" the leader declared. "They're my friends. I've got to keep them safe or nobody will."

Flik stood up. "And if I don't try to protect you from the Highland Army, who will?" When nobody answered, he said, "That's why I'll go into battle later."

The leader looked up at him. "What should we do if they make it to the wall? I can fight, too."

"No." Flik shook his head again. "It's my duty to fight, it's your duty to look after your friends. You have to stay alive to do that. If Highland makes it to the walls, you all should run and hide. In fact, when the fighting starts, you should be far away from the walls. I don't want to see any of you caught up in this."

There was a chorus of nervous "Okays" from the boys. Flik was about to turn and leave, but the youngest boy suddenly caught his arm. The boy pulled something out from under his cap and handed it to Flik. In the moonlight, Flik could see that it was a fairly desiccated five-leaf clover. "I've had it ever since I ran from home," the boy said. "It's my good luck charm. I thought maybe…you might need it more."

Flik placed the clover behind his bandanna. "Thank you."

The leader spoke up once more. "Do you think you can win?"

Flik paused one moment to look out over the campfires of the enemy. "We will win," he answered. "Have faith in us; we will drive them back."

"I believe you will," the youngest replied.

The meeting hall was lit by only a few fitful candles when Viktor and Flik entered a little later. The west windows let in only the darkness of night. Shu was standing by the dais, eyes closed, possibly catching a few moments of rest after a busy night. Apple was pacing near Shu, looking decidedly nervous. Tsai too seemed ill at ease, though he simply stood in the center of the room. Gilbert was half hidden in the shadows.

For his own part, Flik was feeling a little queasy, his hurried breakfast of greasy eggs and fatty ham not sitting well in his stomach. He heard people entering the hall and looked up, expecting Riou and Nanami, but it turned out to be Rina, Eilie, and Bolgan, with Pilika in tow.

"Is Riou coming?" Viktor asked impatiently.

"Nanami went to wake him up," Rina answered. Flik could see the expectation on everybody's faces; only Shu seemed unperturbed.

Riou and Nanami came in a few minutes later. They didn't look anxious at all; Riou was just finishing up the remains of a muffin that he'd had to eat. Eilie rushed over to his side, examining him carefully. "Good morning, Riou," she said. "Did you get enough to sleep? Are you sure that you've had enough to eat?" She swept some crumbs off his shirt. Riou bore these ministrations stoically, but Nanami frowned a little at them. Satisfied, Eilie stepped back and said, "You know, everything in this battle depends on your success."

Riou didn't get a chance to respond, for at that moment one of Flik's scouts ran into the room. "Commander, we've returned from scouting the Highland lines."

Flik glanced at Shu, waiting for some kind of signal. When Shu remained motionless, Flik said, "Give me the information."

"Yes, sir. On our left and center the enemy appears to be mostly South Window soldiers. There are Highland cavalry units over on our right. There are also units behind the main lines, but we weren't able to get close enough to identify them."

Shu suddenly spoke, though his eyes remained closed. "Did you encounter Solon Jhee's unit?"

The scout looked quizzically over at Shu but replied, "No. We didn't run into his flags."

Shu's eyes opened, and he walked out towards the center of the room. "Very good. The scouts have done an excellent job." He glanced towards Viktor and Flik. "I will now detail the plan. Viktor, Gilbert, your units will deploy just outside the castle walls. Flik, your unit will stand on our right flank, facing the Highland center and the cavalry on their left. I will coordinate your actions from the walls. You must hold them out of the town until Riou attacks. Understand?"

"You can leave it in our hands," Viktor said.

"We'll do it," Flik added.

Shu faced Flik. "One more order: you must not use your Fire Spears against the South Window soldiers. We need those units to be able to fight when they switch sides."

"I understand." Flik nodded.

"Good." Shu walked over to Riou. "Are you ready?"

"Yes," Riou replied confidently. "I'm ready."

Smiling, Shu said, "Then we will begin the operation now."

Nanami turned and gripped her brother in a fierce hug. "Don't do anything stupid, okay? I'll be right next to you, so just stay behind me."

Bolgan, Eilie, and Rina came up. As soon as Nanami was finished hugging her brother, Eilie gave him a slightly less strenuous embrace but didn't say anything.

Bolgan placed his hand gently on Riou's head. "Good luck, Riou."

Rina smiled and gently pulled her sister away. "Yes, Riou. Good luck and be careful."

Shu walked towards the exit, gesturing for Riou to follow. Nanami came after her brother. Just before leaving the room, Shu said, "Gentlemen, see to your units." Then the three of them were gone.

Viktor looked at Flik and offered his hand to shake. "Time to go. We'll hold them, and then Riou will do his part."

Flik shook Viktor's hand. "Agreed."

They walked out of the room, Viktor and Flik leading, Gilbert just behind, and Pilika and the three performers last. The halls of the castle were dark and silent with only a few lit candles showing the way. Barbara, Leona, and Millie waited on the lower floor, serious expressions on their faces. Millie looked a little pouty at still not being allowed to participate.

Barbara spoke solemnly. "Knock their blocks off, Viktor. Don't let them set a foot in North Window."

"They won't," Viktor answered. "I promise it."

Outside the castle they separated, and Flik headed to where his men were housed. When he arrived, he found his men mounted and ready to go. Gathering the four senior sergeants, he quickly laid out the plan. "We'll leave by the western gate and assemble in a line. From east to west it will be Tarrance, Danel, Jerrim, and Rossgard. Rossgard, you are the extreme right of our whole force. If anybody tries to get around you, engage them and send a messenger asking for help. Also, no Fire Spears where South Window troops might get hurt. That's imperative; we want them able to fight with us later on. Let's move."

They did, horses' shod hooves clattering on cobblestones. The route to the west led them past a pond where a large number of refugees were camped. Some of the refugees cheered as Flik rode past. Many of them looked worried.

The sun was rising out of the pale pink east when Flik went under the west gate. He found himself riding towards the Blue Moon, which was full and setting over the waters of the Granias River. He hoped that wasn't some sort of omen. The Scarlet Moon, becoming pale as the morning light grew, was waxing a little past half-full.

Now that they were beyond the town walls, Flik paused and let the formation shake out into a long battle line. While this was happening, a messenger came out from North Window.

The messenger said, "Lord Shu has seen to the departure of Riou's unit. He wishes your men to ride south to contact with the enemy. From there you are to resist as well as you are able and give ground. You are not to initiate a melee with enemy forces. Also, he wished to remind you of his warning about the Fire Spears. That's it. Good luck, Sir Flik."

Flik nodded his understanding and walked his horse forward to join his line. The sun was rising, warming the air rapidly. Across the field, the Highland army was already arrayed in formation; a line of infantry and cavalry that easily overlapped Flik's own unit. The banners in the front seemed to be almost entirely from South Window. Somehow, that didn't surprise him. Why would Highland expose their own troops when they could get drafted auxiliaries to do most of the fighting?

Flik felt his anxieties melt away in the warm air. His training from Warrior's Village rushed up to fill him with confidence. He unsheathed his sword and shouted, "Forward at a walk. Open order. Ready bows."

His men responded, though not with any great precision, and extended the formation as they moved. Over to his left, Flik could see Viktor's men keeping pace, and Gilbert's more distant Zexens also moving. Ahead were the soldiers of South Window. Many of their companies suddenly hesitated, seeing the mercenaries approaching. But Flik could see Highland soldiers behind them, minders set to coax the recalcitrant on.

The enemy directly in front of Flik were spear-carrying infantry, so he closed to a hundred yards of them. It was here that he met the first resistance, not from the South Window troops, but from the Highland mounted archers behind them. He knew these particular soldiers, had fought against them several times. These were Culgan's men. Flik stood his ground, having his men dart forward on horseback, launch arrows over the heads of the South Window soldiers, and then fall back out of range.

After a quarter hour of this, Culgan's soldiers rode up into the South Window formation, the two units becoming thoroughly mixed. Unable to fight back without also hurting the South Window soldiers, Flik ordered a retreat out of arrow range. The opposing infantry and mounted archers followed at a walking pace.

Flik's battle instincts cried out for the Fire Spears. He could see that the Highland formation was now so dense that the casualties inflicted would be appalling. But he didn't give the order; he wasn't about to ruin the plan just to gain a tactical advantage. Instead, as the enemy drew closer, he had his men stay out of range and give ground.

Another problem soon presented itself. Highland heavy cavalry was setting up on the end of their line, off to the right of Flik. Even as he watched, they started forward at a walk, building up speed to outflank him.

Flik shouted for a pair of messengers. To the first, he said, "Go down to Jerrim, tell him to detach a half-company to support Rossgard. Then go to Rossgard and tell him he should use Fire Spears to keep that Highland cavalry from outflanking us. Go!"

As that man rode off, Flik commanded the second messenger. "Ride to Tarrance, tell him to extend to the right."

When that man was gone, Flik shouted at Danel. "Hold formation, shift right!" Flik spurred Nightstar towards the location that he wanted Danel to reform around.

The sudden glint of metal in the sunlight was all the warning Flik had, but he snapped his shield up in time block an arrow plunging out of the sky at him. It struck the wood of his shield, the head splintering through. More arrows were falling around his men. Culgan's mounted archers were advancing again, shedding the cover of the slower moving South Window infantry in an effort to harass Flik while he was changing formation.

He might have ordered a retreat, but he was unsure how the men would respond to a sudden change in orders. A mistake at this critical moment might lead to a rout, so Flik let his commands stand. The shift was underway, men were riding all around him, moving the line slightly to the right. A horse was hit in the neck by an arrow, reared, and threw his rider. One of his men took an arrow in his arm but rode on.

Flik was busy tracking another arrow as it bore down on him. This time he raised his shield and easily deflected it away. Nightstar made a lurch to the right as an arrow buried itself beside her left front hoof.

The formation change was complete. Flik heard the roar of Fire Spears from Rossgard's position, but kept his eyes on the danger to the front. "Back!" he shouted. "Back and out of range. Keep formation!"

The men did, albeit a little raggedly. Now that it was safe to look, Flik checked on the situation to the right. Fire and smoke raged in front of Rossgard's position, but he seemed to have held the Highland cavalry off.

Flik's men traded more arrows with Culgan's mounted archers, but the enemy soon found cover in the advancing South Window infantry. Moreover, the Highland heavy cavalry was forming once again on the right. Reluctantly, Flik gave ground, noting that he was getting close to the walls of North Window as he did so.

After another hour of giving ground as Highland advanced, Flik found his unit flush against the hastily repaired walls of North Window. Off to the left, Viktor and Gilbert's units had been similarly pushed back. Culgan's mounted archers were creeping forward again, the movement suggesting that they were confident of victory.

Danel, a worried frown on his face, said, "We need to get inside the gate, sir. If they pin us up against the wall, we'll be in a lot of trouble."

"If they get to the wall, we won't be able to hold them out of North Window," Flik replied. "Our orders were to defend North Window until Riou's unit attacks. We will follow those orders."

"Sir!" Danel answered, snapping off a salute.

A messenger rode in from Rossgard's position on the right flank. "Sir, Rossgard reports that the Highland cavalry are assembling over to his right again."

Flik chewed this over. Finally he responded, "Tell Jerrim to take the remainder of his unit over in support. We'll just have to extend the lines to cover." He was about to give the order when more of Culgan's arrows began raining down.

One of the mercenaries to Flik's left took an arrow in the chest and dropped off his horse. Another winced as a shaft buried itself in his leg. The men around him were looking at the approaching enemy, unease building in their faces. Flik knew that he needed to buy some time and rebuild their morale. He could do that with the Fire Spears, drive the Highlanders off and reform the lines. But the South Window troops were still just behind the mounted archers. Any attack against Culgan would also be an attack against his potential allies.

Flik raised his sword, drawing in a breath to give a desperate command, and suddenly the South Window soldiers stopped advancing. Culgan's mounted archers advanced a little farther before they too halted. A lull came over the field.

Both the South Window and Highland soldiers were gazing at something happening to their rear. Flik couldn't see what was going on, but he had his suspicions. Had Riou managed to attack Solon Jhee's unit? The men from South Window were becoming very animated, messengers passing back and forth between the individual companies. Then, to Flik's joy and relief, the South Window infantry lowered their spears and advanced on Culgan's men.

"Rally! Rally and advance," Flik yelled. "We'll crush the Highlanders between us."

Culgan was too intelligent to permit that to happen. His unit immediately broke off the attack and began withdrawing to the west at a trot. Flik pressed the pursuit, exchanging arrows with the fleeing enemy. An arrow punched one of Flik's men on the collarbone with a horrid cracking noise, and that man dropped out of his saddle. Moments later though, the mercenaries began overtaking the wounded stragglers from Culgan's men. These men either yielded without a fight or were overcome and made prisoners.

The rest of the fleeing mounted archers finally made it to the safety of their fellow countrymen, a unit of heavy cavalry. Together, both units continued to retreat. But Flik no longer had to worry about them using the South Window soldiers as cover.

He halted the pursuit to allow the sergeants to dress the lines. When his men were back in formation, Flik yelled, "Ready Fire Spears! Attack!"

The range was long, mitigating the actual damage, but the psychological effect was easy to see. The rear ranks of the Highlanders broke formation, trying to avoid the fire attack. Entire companies lost cohesion, becoming masses of riders fleeing in a disorderly mob. Regardless, they were too far ahead for Flik to overtake them without also dangerously exhausting his horses.

Instead, he rode towards the closest South Window soldiers, who were turning to face to the south along the top of a gentle ridge. As Flik approached, he was greeted exuberantly by a familiar face.

"Look at that!" Freed shouted, tears in his eyes. "We're winning! We're winning! Lord Riou has won us a great victory." He had to take off his glasses and wipe teardrops off them.

Flik guided is horse to the top of the rise and looked over the field. It was true. Solon Jhee's unit, in the rear of the Highland formation, was fleeing to the east in a confused rout. As Flik watched, he could see Viktor and Gilbert's units coming up onto the ridge, joining with the South Window soldiers to present a solid front to the remaining Highland infantry.

But that infantry, though still slightly outnumbering the defenders, was in no mood to continue the fight. Flik watched as they began to pull back, withdrawing in the direction of their leader. Culgan's mounted archers were already falling into place as the rearguard.

Flik sighed in relief. They had won. He had fulfilled his duty; none of those children would have to run this time.


	27. Chapter 27 Power to Gather

**Chapter 27 – Power to Gather**

Flik and his cavalry stood sentinel on that hill for several more hours, watching the continuing Highland retreat. Meanwhile the rest of the army, now several thousand soldiers larger than it had been in the morning, tried to crowd through the two gates of North Window. He gathered the senior sergeants and listened to the casualty reports: eleven dead and eighteen wounded. He shook his head. He might call the numbers "acceptable," but that label seemed like an insult to those who had died.

He could see a far graver insult going on from where he stood, much of it being committed by the victorious South Window soldiers against their foes. Flik knew it was inevitable, but he wasn't comfortable with the looting of corpses. Part of his concern was simply the breakdown in discipline. Part of it was the fact that many of the scavengers didn't make any distinction between the dead and the wounded. Thus he kept a tight rein on his own men, and both the rankers and the sergeants understood perfectly that there would be severe consequences for any transgressions.

After a while, Flik saw a unit of South Window infantry, possibly a third of their total number, turn and march south down the road in his general direction. Curious, he trotted Nightstar over towards them until he was close enough to recognize their leader.

"General Arnhem," Flik said, coughing to cover his surprise. "I haven't seen you in a while." He hadn't. The last he'd seen of the pudgy man had been when he'd delivered the news of Granmeyer's death. He had not even realized the former general had followed him to North Window. Looking more closely, Flik realized that the general was not a "former general" anymore. Arnhem had somehow acquired some fancy robes and a sword. Not only that, but the troops marching behind him seemed to be following his command.

"Yes," Arnhem replied, squirming uncomfortably on the back of a horse that was too small for his size. "It's a…pleasure to see you again." Now that the general was back in his own element, he did not look very pleased to see Flik.

Since Flik didn't have any desire to continue with the small talk, he went straight to his concern. "Where are you taking these men, general?" As he spoke, a company of infantry carrying captured Highland flags began marching past.

Arnhem swallowed. "The strategist Shu suggested that I ought to take a unit of South Window infantry and go liberate South Window. He said I should take the flags to show that the Highland army has been defeated, and that the citizens of the city will open the gates once they see evidence of the victory. After that, I'll serve as governor of South Window, in the name of the late Lord Granmeyer."

Flik almost scowled, but kept it down to a couple of twitches at the corner of his mouth. _What is Shu playing at, giving this man authority?_ Flik worked his mouth up into a smile and managed to sincerely say, "I wish you success, general."

Arnhem nodded his farewell and rode off to catch up with his men. Flik rejoined his mounted archers and, seeing as all the Highland units were now out of sight, led his men back towards North Window. Off on the shore of the lake, he saw a fleet of small craft running up onto the sand. The soldiers of Riou's unit were forming up on that beach.

Arriving at the wall to the city, Flik found the celebration already well underway. Soldiers and refugees mingled in the streets, though they did give way for Flik's men. Cheers filled up his ears, and somebody rushed forward to hand him a wreath of flowers. He looked dumbly down at the assortment of multicolored blossoms and then settled it on his head. The adulation grew louder.

"Hooray for Blue Thunder! Hooray for Lord Riou! Lord Riou drove the Highlanders away! He's a true hero!"

Flik rubbed his forehead. That nickname seemed to be changing as often as the weather. Only after he'd worried about that did he realize that the crowd was calling Riou, "Lord Riou."

His thoughts were suddenly scattered as a woman stepped on his foot in the left stirrup and scrambled up onto Nightstar. Flik had the impression of a brown braid and equally brown eyes before she lunged at him and kissed. Nightstar, calm enough despite the noise, began to dance a little with the unexpected extra weight. The crowd's voice grew into white noise in Flik's ears.

He used one of Nightstar's lurches as an excuse to break the kiss and set the woman back down to street level. She ran after him for a few paces, trying to shout her name over the crowd. Then she jumped at the nearest soldier and started kissing him. Flik's cheeks burned from the encounter, but he was more relieved than jealous to see that he was no longer the target for her affections.

Any hope of getting the companies back to the stables in an organized manner was rapidly disappearing. Flik shrugged; for once, there was nothing he could do about it. The crowd wanted a party, and his men had been caught up in it. He soldiered on, walking Nightstar closer to the castle.

Somebody else was calling his name. Flik looked in the general direction of the voice and saw Bolgan walking towards him, clearing a path by his towering mass. Pilika and Eilie were with him, as was Tsai. Eilie darted from Bolgan's side and ran towards Flik, asking a question that was drowned out by the noise.

"What?" Flik shouted in response.

"Have you seen Riou?" she yelled. "Is he okay?"

Flik began to shake his head to answer the first question, but worried that Eilie might take it as the answer to the second. "I'm sure he's fine," he finally shouted.

Eilie frowned worriedly, biting her lower lip. Tsai plodded forward to say something that was lost in the celebration.

"Louder," Flik yelled, annoyed.

Tsai tried to speak again, but Eilie overrode him. "He says that Shu's planning a debriefing as soon as everyone's gathered."

Flik nodded his thanks and continued on.

Later, after he'd brushed Nightstar down and seen to her food and water, Flik attended to his own growling stomach. A cook was serving meat wraps, the meat coming out of a large vat. He wolfed his first one down without tasting it, grabbed a second one and proceeded to eat it a little more slowly as he made his way up the stairs.

Sounds from outside the castle crashed against the stone walls. Flik listened to the chanting crowd.

"Lord Riou is coming! Lord Riou is coming!"

Flik wiped his forehead in relief. The fact that the crowd was still cheering seemed to suggest that Riou was unscathed. That was quite fortuitous, especially considering the dangerous nature of the youth's mission.

Flik ascended the remaining steps and entered the corridor leading to the second story hall. Once again, Oulan stood outside, but this time she smiled and greeted him with, "Congratulations. Most of the others are already inside. Only Riou and his sister have yet to arrive."

"Thank you," Flik said, walking past the bodyguard. He entered the room to hear the trailing end of a conversation.

"For the moment, I have enough spaces and orderlies for the wounded, but that's only because our casualties were so light." The voice was Tuta's, his tone serious as he gave the report. "If the number of wounded were any greater, we'd have all sorts of problems. We don't have the space or trained men to deal with the results of a major battle. Not only that, but untreated injuries fester and cause all sorts of diseases."

Tuta was standing up on the dais with Shu next to him. Viktor and Freed stood below to either side, and Rina and Leona were further back. Afternoon sunlight streamed in brightly through the windows.

Shu nodded. "Thank you for voicing your concerns, Tuta, it was most timely. I will definitely make upgrading the medical arrangements one of my first priorities. Also I wanted to compliment you on what you've done so far. Your facility is most excellent."

Tuta beamed. "Thank you, sir. If you'll excuse me." Face brimming with pride, the boy quickly walked out of the room.

Shu immediately snapped his gaze around to Flik. "Your report."

"The Highland Army was in full retreat to the east when contact was lost. They seemed to be moving down the coast in the direction of Kuskus."

Shu's expression was even. "As expected. Everything is moving as I predicted. The retaking of South Window should go smoothly now."

"I was wondering about that," Flik interrupted. "Is Arnhem really the best choice for this mission?" He looked over to Freed. "No offense, but the general's qualifications are…slight, at best."

"The general was the head of one of the most important families in the city," Freed answered. Then he coughed. "Of course, what you say about his abilities is completely true. Even my Lord Granmeyer knew of Arnhem's limitations."

"I am well aware of the general's ineptitude and cowardice," Shu responded, not batting an eye. "All the more reason to give him a duty that he is suited for. His political connections will make him an asset in stabilizing South Window. On the other hand, had he remained here, that clout would've eventually forced me to give him a unit, if only to keep him mollified. I think you can imagine that contemplating such a move filled me with trepidation."

"Oh," Flik answered.

"You're pretty cold," Viktor rumbled.

"Someone has to be," Shu replied, switching his stare to Viktor. "Today's victory is only the first step on a long road, and I have to have the detachment to see the way clearly. Our situation is precarious, and I will make use of every tool needed to defeat the Highland Army. Even if those tools have serious flaws."

There was a moment of tense silence, broken by the sound of approaching footsteps. Flik looked towards the entrance in time to see Riou walking in. Eilie and Nanami followed just behind, and then the larger bulk of Bolgan. Tsai trailed in last.

Flik took a few steps and shook Riou's hand. "Good work, Riou. You've definitely earned all the acclaim. Everybody's calling you a hero."

Viktor laughed jovially. "As well they should. He practically set the Highland Army to flight all by himself."

Eilie was grinning. "Everybody outside was talking about Riou too. They were calling him the 'herald of victory'."

Riou, naturally enough, took all of this praise in stride. The crowd's cheering didn't seem to have touched him at all. It had got through to Nanami, who looked less than pleased by everything.

"We've won today," Shu announced, drawing attention back in his direction. He stepped down off the dais and said, "But we mustn't lose focus of the bigger picture. Our victory is a small thing when set beside the fact that Lady Anabelle is dead and that Muse remains under the control of Highland." He paused and clasped his hands behind his back. "Let me be brutally honest: the Jowston Alliance has failed and the individual City-States are in danger of being overcome one at a time. Moreover, there is still Luca Blight and his White Wolves to worry about. In our current state, the full might of Highland is far too much for us to handle. If we are to continue this resistance, we must gather more power in this place. We must have enough strength to fend off Luca Blight and drive Highland back over the border."

Flik felt his mind working over the implications of Shu's speech. He could see other people also thinking it out, but he was the first to comment. "You want us to fight Highland as an independent army, not attached to any of the City-States, with this castle as our base of operations, right?"

"Correct," Shu answered. "We already have a good foundation for the army in this old castle. What we need now is the personality to gather and focus our men into a cohesive force. Someone who can stand above the short term interests of the individual cities and unify all of the people of Jowston. We need a leader.

Viktor frowned, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "And you want to be that leader?"

For just a moment, Flik thought he saw the ghost of a smile on Shu's lips, but it disappeared, leaving no trace. Instead Shu responded, "No. I am not the one. For all of my military genius, I know that I do not have that ability to make people follow me, to set their hearts ablaze, and to inspire them to overcome great odds." He chuckled, a rueful little laugh. "I can make the plans to win this war, but it must fall to someone else to execute them."

Frustrated, Flik stared at the strategist. "If it's not you, then who? Are we going to ask one of the remaining mayors to lead us? I don't believe any of them are up to it."

Shu began walking even as he answered the question. "The person who will lead us is right here in this room." He walked towards Flik. "Though young, his exploits are already celebrated." Flik tensed, momentarily sure that Shu was going to name him, but Shu stepped past. Turning, aware that everybody in the room was following Shu's movements, Flik watched as Shu stopped in front of his choice.

"Riou," Shu began, paused and began again. "_Lord_ Riou. You are the one who must lead the New State Army. Your heart is what will show us the way to peace."

Nanami moved before anyone could speak, placing herself angrily between her brother and Shu. "Wait a minute," she said testily. "Why do you want to throw this all on my brother? It's not fair. At least explain why."

Viktor walked up towards Shu, but his eyes were on Riou. "It's because of Genkaku's legacy, isn't it?"

"Genkaku," Leona whispered, wonder on her voice. "Can you really unite the alliance around that name?"

Shu took another step towards Riou, causing Nanami to give ground. "Lord Riou," he said, "your father is the hero Genkaku who rose up, defended Jowston, and was ultimately exiled from Muse almost twenty-five years ago. You bear the same 'Bright Shield Rune' that he did. You are the one who defeated General Solon Jhee of Highland. You are the hope of all our people. But you are more than simply reputation, Lord Riou. You have the charisma and brilliance that attracts people to you. Your power is what is needed now. You must lead."

Nanami was still caught between Shu and Riou. She looked back at her brother as he placed a hand on her shoulder to guide her out of the way. "Riou," she pleaded, "do you understand what you're getting into? You'll have to keep fighting. I," she steadied herself, "I think you should consider what you're about to do, at least."

She stepped aside, leaving Riou face to face with Shu. Finally Riou spoke, in a quiet modest voice, "You talk about 'my power' as if it were something special, but I don't think it is. Viktor and Flik are stronger than I am. Freed has more political skills. You have a greater intellect."

"Right!" Nanami shouted, smiling. "That's right. What power could my brother have that outweighs all of that?"

Shu was unfazed. "His open heart is a power much greater than brute force, political skill, or intellectual acumen. Lord Riou, you have the rarest of abilities. People look at you and see that there is hope for the future. Today I saw an army on the verge of disintegration rally and emerge victorious because of your bravery. Because of that bravery, people will gather to you. They will gather to save their families, their friends, and their country. And they will gather because you can lead them to that salvation, Lord Riou. That is your power."

Nanami's lips were pinched tight, her eyes glistening with tears, but she didn't have the words to argue against Shu.

Riou answered. "I want to help, if I can. But I don't think I'm worthy of all of your expectations."

Viktor walked to Riou's side, placing his hand on the youth's head. "Well, nobody should expect you to make the decision right now," he said gently. "But I wanted to talk to you about Genkaku. Anabelle was going to, but then…" He trailed off.

Shu backed away from Riou and closed his eyes. "Lord Riou, go ahead and think it through. Listen to what Viktor has to say. I will wait for you to make up your mind. I believe in you."

Viktor was already walking from the room. "Come to the tavern," he said over his shoulder. "That's where I'll be. We can have a long talk about your father, Riou. After that, the choice is up to you."

Flik did not wait around in the tavern to listen to the story. He had heard it, of course, in bits and pieces. Moreover, he wasn't sure if his presence would help Riou make a decision. Come to think of it, he didn't know which decision would be the better one. If Shu were correct about Riou's power, then they would certainly have need of it to fight off Highland. But it seemed a very heavy burden to place on Riou's shoulders alone.

Inevitably, Flik ended up wandering up to the top of the ruined tower to rest against the rooftop. Looking down, he could see that the town was filled with celebration, people dancing and drinking around crackling bonfires. For them, today's victory was all that mattered, and tomorrow's tribulations were out of mind.

Suddenly, Flik felt the presence of his lightning rune more acutely. He looked up to see light flashing in the clouds gathering overhead. As it often did, the feeling of his rune in his hand brought memories of Odessa to mind. However, this time, they were much clearer, much more startlingly present.

It was a sweltering night in Gregminster, where the air lay thick and still over the lights of the city. Heavy clouds reflected the heat back towards the ground, beating on the stones of houses until they were hot to the touch. Flik, a younger version of himself, stood at the glass window of his darkened room and looked into the night sky. The only blue he wore was the bandanna around his forehead, everything else was simple leather browns. His sword was yet to be named; often he wondered why he even thought about naming it.

He had traveled far since his departure from Warrior's Village and grown powerful in those journeys. He didn't need their traditions anymore, but he couldn't seem to let go of them either.

Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Flik found himself tightening his right hand into a fist. He didn't understand why, but the lightning rune in his hand bothered him on nights like this. It wasn't painful, but the feeling was uncomfortable. He began rubbing the top of his right hand with his left thumb.

There was a knock on his door. "Who's there?" Flik asked, feeling annoyed at the interruption.

"I wanted to talk to you," Odessa said from the other side of the door. "May I come in?"

His annoyance departed, replaced by nervousness. He swallowed twice, his throat suddenly dry, and said, "Of course, my lady."

She was wearing a white cotton dress with blue scrollwork around the hem and sleeves. She carried several strings of potch in her hands. "You forgot your payment," she said, smiling.

Flik was torn between the urge to stare at her beauty and the decorum to look away out the window. He settled on a happy medium of fixing his eyes firmly on the wardrobe directly in front of him. "It doesn't matter," he answered dismissively. "I've already told you that I don't need any payment; I just want to help out."

Odessa laughed, a clear sound that seemed to pierce Flik's ears. "Who ever heard of a mercenary working for free? You're willing to expose yourself to danger as my bodyguard but not expect any reward? I don't think so- take the potch, please."

She pressed the strings into his right hand. Flik momentarily felt her fingers on his callused palm. He didn't look at her, but answered, "Thank you." Before he could continue, there was a flash of lightning nearby, thunder loud enough to rattle the window. Again aware of the foreignness of the rune, Flik's right hand spasmed and the coins clattered to the floor. He brought the hand up to eye level, flexing it to see if it was fully under his control.

Odessa stepped into view, a worried frown on her face. "Are you all right?"

Flik averted his eyes, looking fully out the window. "I'm fine, my lady."

"No you're not," she said, grabbing his right hand. "Something is bothering you. Please tell me."

Flik snatched his hand away. "It's nothing," he said, a little more harshly than he intended. "I just need to get stronger, that's all."

Odessa moved again, slipping between Flik and the window. "What, you can't trust me with your weaknesses? I can't have a bodyguard who doesn't trust me."

Flik took a few steps back from the window. Odessa's closeness bothered him. Even if Achilles had been dead for more than a year, Flik still thought of Odessa as Achilles' fiancée. "I have to be strong in order to protect you," Flik answered.

Odessa smiled. "But no one can ever be all powerful. I must know your weaknesses so that I don't put you in danger through my own ignorance. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something happened that I could've prevented."

Flik remained silent, his pride refusing to permit a response.

Sighing, Odessa sat back against the sill. "Perhaps if I shared a weakness with you, then you might open up a little."

Flik shook his head. "You don't need to do that, my lady."

She held out her hand to silence him. "If it gets you to open up. Just listen." She sighed, gazing down at the floor. Flik took the moment to catch a quick look at her, but averted his eyes the moment her head came back up. She said, "I fear that I'm too stubborn to gather people to my side. Once Barbarossa finally decides to bring the conflict out into the open, I'm going to need many more allies than I've got now."

"I don't think you're too stubborn!" Flik interjected, now using the heat in his voice to rally to her defense.

Odessa waved her hand again. "Yes I am," she said firmly. "I couldn't convince my own brother to join me. I didn't have the patience to listen to him. We ended up arguing. I even called him a coward."

Flik frowned. "He is a coward. How could a man with his experience refuse to help us overthrow a corrupt government? He should understand that sometimes these things require bloodshed."

"No." Odessa stood up from the window. "No, my brother is the most compassionate and wisest man I've ever met. I shouldn't have dismissed his words so lightly. You see, if I cannot convince my own brother of the rightness of my cause, will I be able to convince other people?" She looked down at the floor again.

Flik's feet were moving, dropping him down into a genuflection before her. "You have convinced me, my lady. If you have no one else, at least I will help see this through to the end." He looked up at her face, shocked to see tears glistening in her eyes.

Odessa laughed and then sniffed. "If you're going to follow me to the end, you might learn to call me by my name. It's not that difficult."

Flik could feel himself beginning to blush. He sincerely hoped the darkness of his room covered it. "Yes, my…yes, Odessa."

She knelt down, placed his right hand between her two, and replied, "Now you can tell me about your pain."

A fat drop of rain hit Flik in the eye, breaking the reverie. Thunder rolled in the distance. He tried to summon up the memory once more, but it was now out of reach, fading and insubstantial. The rain was building up, so he went back down the stairs into the castle. He made his way through the dark hallways until he reached his destination- the tavern.

Viktor was still up, sitting at a table, nursing the remains of his beer to the light of a single candle. "How'd it go?" Flik asked.

Viktor looked at his drink thoughtfully. "I think it went all right," he answered. "Riou's a hard kid to read, when you get down to it, but he listened all the way through. I can't ask for anything more than that." Flik took the seat next to his friend, who looked over at him. "Can't offer you anything to drink," Viktor said. "You look like you've been thinking. What about?"

For a moment, Flik's pride refused to permit a response, but he angrily swept it aside. "I was thinking about Odessa, actually."

Viktor studied Flik more closely. "Funny, you don't look morose at all."

"I was just thinking about all the little things she did to help me."

Viktor laughed once. "She did a good job. I don't think I've had to smack you for doing something stupid in…oh…about seven years."

Flik couldn't help but laugh, but after they had subsided into silence, he said, "If Riou chooses to lead us, we need to support him with all of our strength. That sort of leadership is a tremendous load to carry."

Viktor nodded. "Don't worry. He'll have all of us to help him bear it. He won't have to fight alone."


	28. Chapter 28 Poised to Gather

**Chapter 28 – Poised to Gather**

Breakfast was oatmeal, served without any flavoring. The tavern was crowded this morning, though there wasn't much conversation. Riou, Nanami, Pilika, Apple and the three performers had pulled their chairs into a tight circle around a pair of tables. For his own part, Flik sat with Tsai and Rikimaru to either side and Viktor directly across from him. There were others too. Gengen sat in a chair trying to wipe oatmeal off his nose. Millie, one of the few who was venturing to speak, sat at the same table as Anita, Hanna, and Oulan. These three women ate silently. Shu headed up the last table; his companions were Gilbert, Kinnison, Tuta, and Freed. Somehow, the strategist managed to make eating oatmeal a dignified process. Leona and Barbara stood behind the tavern counter, eating there. Zamza paced around the room with his bowl of oatmeal in hand, looking, in vain, for a free place to sit.

No one made any noises regarding Riou and his decision. Flik risked a few looks in the youth's direction, but nothing seemed to be showing on his face. He just kept spooning mouthfuls of oatmeal, even as Nanami struck up a halfhearted conversation about fortune telling with Rina.

Shu's chair suddenly scraped along the floor, and he stood up, walked over to the counter, and handed his empty bowl to Leona. Clearing his throat, he addressed Riou. "I shall be up in the great hall. I await your choice, Lord Riou." Then he left the tavern, his steps soft, but still the loudest thing in the room.

Zamza hurried over to take Shu's spot, but other people started getting up. Freed and Tsai, followed by Apple, got up, delivered their bowls, and left the room. Viktor nodded at Flik, and they too gave their bowls to Leona. She scowled at the pile of dishes growing on her countertop.

Pale light from an overcast sky filtered into the dim interior of the castle. The general mood continued to be subdued as Viktor and Flik climbed the stairs. At the entrance to the great hall, the journeyman crystal glittered. Flik went over and offered a silent prayer to it. Though he was not technically setting out on a journey, he did feel like today marked the beginning of a new direction in his life. Viktor arched his eyebrows, but as Flik stepped back from the crystal, he decided to bow and say a prayer too, mumbling under his breath.

They entered the room to find Apple speaking to Shu. "I think you're putting Riou under a lot of pressure," she declared. "You've practically decided the matter for him." They stood by the dais. Tsai was also near the dais, but closer to the windowed western wall. Freed paced around in the center of the room.

Shu was unperturbed by the argument. "We covered this ground yesterday, Apple. I believe Riou has the strength of character to bear up under the adversity. If you wish to continue this discussion, at least bring some new arguments. It grows tiresome debating the same points with you."

Apple balled her hands into fists, shaking with annoyance. But then she took in a deep breath and spoke again. "How about this? Suppose Riou agrees to this only because of your arguments? If he doesn't truly believe in himself, he could end up cracking at the worst possible moment. What happens if his confidence collapses and he decides to run?"

Shu smirked. "You flatter me, Apple. Do you think my words are so strong that they would sway Riou into doing something that his heart is set against?"

Apple huffed. "I do, in fact. If he said 'no,' I think you'd try with all your might to argue him around to 'yes.'"

Shu shook his head. "If that is your concern, then I promise you that I won't. I will make no more arguments to try and persuade him. If he rejects the leadership, I will hold my peace. Is that satisfactory?"

Apple didn't say anything else. Viktor and Flik walked towards the dais, taking up positions on either side of Shu and Apple. Flik began wondering about Riou's choice. What would happen if he decided not to become the leader? Would they be able to continue fighting? Or would they be driven out of North Window by the next Highland army?

More people entered the room. Rina, Eilie, and Bolgan walked to the center of the room, near Freed. Tuta wandered over to the windows and looked out at the castle and town in the midmorning light. Barbara, Leona, and Pilika entered a little later and took up a position at the far wall. Gilbert strolled in and stationed himself in the far corner. Last of all came Riou and Nanami. Everyone was quiet as the two of them walked up to face Shu. Riou met Shu's eyes, his face composed and calm. Nanami remained a pace behind her brother, looking at him.

"Have you made your decision?" Shu asked.

"If all of you believe in me," Riou began, "I will do it."

Flik had the distinct impression that people started breathing again. It seemed foolish, but he felt relief that Riou had accepted. For the first time in a while, he felt confident of victory over Highland.

"Thanks, Riou," Viktor said and walked forward to shake the new leader's hand. "I promise that you'll have all my power to help you defeat that bastard, Luca Blight."

Flik took a few steps towards Riou. It felt strange, this boy had started out as his prisoner and now was master over them all. "Riou, thank you for giving us your power. I'll stand with you to the very end of this."

Tsai, speaking slowly and deliberately, added, "I have no love of conflict and little enough strength, but I will fight with all of it to help you bring an end to this war."

Freed also spoke. "For the sake of South Window and my Lord Granmeyer, and for all those who have suffered because of Highland, I will follow you."

Smiling, Shu bowed in front of Riou. "Lord Riou, with all of the knowledge that I have learned from Master Mathiu, I swear that I will bring you victory."

Apple bowed too. "You know my limitations, but you shall have all the aid that I can give."

Gilbert shrugged his shoulders. "I've already watched you bring us one victory. My men and I will fight for you."

Viktor started belly laughing. "Come on, why are we all so formal and serious? You'd think somebody died in here. We have a new leader! We ought to have a party. Leona, cook us up a feast." Leona scowled at Viktor's order, but it softened quickly. People started cheering.

Then a new voice spoke, calm and reserved. "May I offer congratulations as well?"

Tuta, who'd been standing by the windows, jumped in surprise. "Master Huan!" he exclaimed.

It was. The same man who'd left Tuta in Flik's care back in Muse now casually made his way to stand next to Riou. His long black hair was still impeccable, and he was wearing the same orange dress robes.

Tuta jumped happily. "Doctor, you're all right. I was afraid you'd…" He looked abashed to have even thought about the doctor being injured or dead.

Huan smiled serenely. "It's quite my fault that I've had you so worried."

Flik shook his head. He'd hardly had time to think about what had happened to Doctor Huan. There had been times when he'd been too busy worrying about surviving to the next sunrise. "How did you escape Muse?" Flik asked.

"A kindhearted soldier stayed by my side, even when I could hardly keep up. We went west into Greenhill and south into Two Rivers. I heard that a resistance was gathering here, so I got some boatmen to get me across the river.

Nodding, Shu said, "Your arrival will undoubtedly raise the morale of our soldiers. Your reputation for healing is well known."

Huan inclined his head. "Thank you for the praise. If my modest knowledge of medicine can help save the lives of your troops, I will be happy." He bowed to Riou. "Lord Riou, I shall endeavor to make myself useful to the people of this castle."

Tuta looked thoughtfully at Riou. "What are we going to call this castle? If we've got a new army, doesn't the castle need a new name as well?"

Viktor clapped his hands. "The kid's right. North Window was the name of a village that was wiped out years ago. We don't want go around reminding people of that."

"What about it?" Freed asked. "Perhaps we should let Lord Riou come up with a name."

Eilie rushed over to Riou's side, nudging between him and Nanami. "Yeah! Come on, Riou, think up a good name." Nanami frowned at Eilie's usurpation of her place at Riou's side.

Riou looked at Eilie and pondered the decision for a moment. "Well call it Dunan Castle, after the lake it overlooks."

Viktor nodded. "Good choice. It's a great name."

"I think it's good, too," Eilie exclaimed, smiling.

Rina laughed behind her hand. "You'd have said that for anything he came up with."

Eilie flashed a glare at her sister. "Shut up, you're embarrassing me!"

Rina continued to laugh. Other people were busy trying out the name. Bolgan jumped up and down, shouting "Dunan Castle! Dunan Castle!" Apple was more thoughtful, whispering the name under her breath. Freed simply declared, "So, it's now Dunan Castle."

Flik smiled. "It's fine, isn't it? We gave Riou the choice, and he's come up with a workable name."

"Good," Viktor replied. "Now that the naming is taken care of, let's get back to planning the party."

He extended his arms to hug Riou and Nanami, but hadn't even begun the embrace when the room was filled up with soft blue light. Flik turned towards its source on the dais, not with alarm, but with the sense the he knew what this foretold. As the intensity of the light diminished, the silhouette of a woman appeared.

Viktor shouted something that Flik didn't quite hear over the general astonishment. Shu put his hands behind his back and slowly turned to face the light. Nanami jumped between her brother and the light, brandishing her folding rod. "What is that?" she asked. Getting a closer look, she continued, "Who are you?"

It was no surprise to Flik when the figure responded, in a serene, detached voice, "I am called Leknaat. I am the keeper of the Gate Rune and the Arbiter of the Great Balance." Flik had seen her once before, when she'd revived Gremio during the Toran Liberation War. For a time, Flik had wondered why she couldn't have brought Odessa back, too.

Leknaat was dressed in a hooded cloak and a long dress, both of which were light blue. A mauve shawl draped around her shoulders and down the front of her dress. Her black hair hung all the way to her feet.

"Riou," she said, turning to face him, "you who have inherited the 'Bright Shield Rune.' The cycle is now closed. The hundred and eight stars of destiny are once again poised to gather. I bring you a gift, the 'Stone Tablet of Promise.' Each name that appears on this stone is another linking to destiny. They are your followers, and your strength."

There was another shimmering of light, and another figure appeared next to Leknaat. Flik nearly groaned; it was someone else he recognized from the last war. The figure looked like a young boy with neck length brown hair that also hung down to just above his green eyes. He wore a green sleeveless surcoat that came down to below his knees. His shirt and pants were white.

"I am Luc," he declared disdainfully. "I am Lady Leknaat's greatest pupil. I shall guard the 'Stone Tablet' for you. You should all be grateful that the Lady has given this to you." He paused, glanced slightly towards Leknaat, and his cool expression slipped a little. "I shall also grace you with my august presence. It's not something I would've chosen, but Lady Leknaat commands it of me."

Leknaat turned her head slightly towards Luc, silencing him more effectively than any sharp words. She said, "My eyes are old, and the future is dim and indistinct. Strands of fate weave around you, and together they will comprise what is to come. Your friend, the one who bears the 'Black Sword,' he has a role to play as well. You both have been granted power, but you have also been handed a destiny. The path of destiny may be crushing, but it can be navigated by one with an open and courageous heart. Remember this: it was your free will to begin down this road, and it will be your free will that will see it to the end. You are not a slave to fate, Riou, so do not despair. Proceed carefully. I will be watching."

And in another flash of light, she was gone, leaving only her student up on the dais. Luc's expression turned superior again, a cold smile breaking out on his lips. "I think I recognize some of you losers," he declared. "What were your names? Oh, Viktor and Flik, that's right." He considered for a moment. "I thought you were dead."

"You little punk," Viktor growled. "Did Leknaat get tired of your attitude? Maybe that's why you're here."

"Is this person a friend of yours?" Nanami asked uncertainly.

"More like an associate," Flik explained. "He fought with us during the Liberation War."

Luc's face settled back into an even expression. "I think the term 'associate' might be too strong," he interjected offhandedly.

Viktor sighed, hanging his head. "Bah, forget the party. This kid's killed my mood."

Luc scrunched his nose. "I'd forgotten how…pungent such a gathering can be. This room is far too stuffy for my purposes. I shall call the 'Stone Tablet' somewhere more open. At least there I'll be able to imagine the freedom the wind brings." With a flash of light, he had disappeared.

"You think he's gone?" Viktor asked.

"Not likely," Flik answered. "He didn't leave us last time; why would he this time?"

"A man can hope," Viktor replied.

Shu cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "If Riou is to gather people to use, then he must go out to the various towns in this province to see who he can round up. Apple and I will work out a duty chart of who is going with him. There is also the need to continue recruiting and training troops. I ask that none of you neglect your duties."

Flik raised his hand, suddenly feeling like a boy back in Warrior's Village, waiting for his instructor to acknowledge him. When Shu did, Flik asked, "What about the war? Shouldn't we be planning our next move?"

Shu smiled knowingly. "There's no rush. Moving too precipitously will only result in our defeat. Besides, I expect a diplomatic opportunity to come up shortly."

_In Solis 460, Earthsdei, the 28th of Mai:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I am writing this so that in thirty or forty years, when these events have grown cold and distant in my memory, I will not take for granted the things that I have witnessed here. Tir apparently had a similar effect on people, but I was so caught up in my own quest to avenge Odessa that I must not have noticed. Viktor and I and Freed were part of Riou's escort. We went around much of South Window, to the capital, to the major towns, even to little villages. Everywhere we went, Riou was mobbed. I do not know how the news had spread so quickly –maybe we have Apple and Shu to thank for that- but everyone knew of the hero Riou. And everyone wanted to meet him, speak to him a moment, or even just touch him._

_Not only that, but they wanted to join him, men, women, and children. It was a minor nightmare simply to see that these people were properly fed as we returned to Dunan Castle. The people who joined were entirely unexpected too. In Radat, Freed's wife, Yoshino, in the middle of her laundry knelt before Riou and asked to join her husband. In South Window, we stumbled over a lady innkeeper and her husband, both of whom somehow know Riou. They too joined us. Not only that, but it seems the husband, Alex, knows a supplier of medicinal items, so now we've got all sorts of restorative herbs coming into Dunan Castle._

_When we left, the castle was a bleak, empty place. Now it is beginning to fill up with life. I can hardly walk anywhere without seeing children in the hallways. That seems to have been Hanna's idea. She's taken to being guardian and surrogate mother to all the orphans here. Not only that, but Shu has hired on several teams of masons and carpenters. There's even some crazy inventor from South Window who hopes to build an elevator for Dunan Castle. All of them are in the process of restoring the rooms on the third floor. Hopefully I'll be moved out of the tavern one of these days._

Viktor suddenly stuck his head through the tavern door. "There you are, Flik. We've got duty down at the docks for the next four hours."

Flik shook his head. "It's not as though I'm complaining, but we just got back earlier this morning."

Viktor laughed good-naturedly. "You've had enough time to sleep, don't you think? Besides, who can sit still with all the hammering and rattling going on?"

"Indeed," Flik answered, getting up from his table. Viktor's statement about the noise was certainly true. Carpenters had set up a temporary workshop on the first floor, and were hard at work constructing beds and other furniture. They also had plenty of conscripted help. Tsai was over at one station helping to saw boards. In another location, Freed was nailing together the framework of a bed. Oulan was hefting in another set of finished boards so that the work could continue. And Rina moved through the chaos to give workers water. In fact, the only person in the room who wasn't doing anything was Luc, who stoically stood in front of the upright slab that was the "Stone Tablet of Promise" and seemed to be trying not to sneeze from all the sawdust.

Viktor and Flik walked through this room and exited down a small portal. This opening led to a set of stairs going down. The lower level of Dunan Castle already contained a jail, which, not surprisingly, had its share of disorderly drunkards, petty thieves, and worse scoundrels. A passage to the right led to an underground graveyard. Many of those who had fallen in the battle to defend this place were buried there.

Finally the passage opened out onto the docks. They'd been, like the rest of the castle, in ruins when Flik had first looked on them. They weren't so now. Teams of workers were laboring to extend temporary wooden wharves and build more permanent stone ones. Viktor and Flik were part of a replacement crew for one of those teams. Stripping off their shirts, they set to work. For the next four hours, they labored under the watchful eyes of a master carpenter who shouted curses as often as he breathed.

It was a dangerous job, involving people getting down into the water. One of the men was suddenly swept up in a rip current, and Flik had to dive in to help rescue the poor man. The water was murky and green, and Flik found the drowning man mostly by feeling for him. He hauled the man up onto the closest pier. Luckily he was still breathing, hacking and spitting water out of his mouth.

By mid-afternoon it was time for Flik, Viktor, and their team to give way for another crew. Viktor celebrated by running down the end of the pier and doing a cannonball into the water. Flik, whose clothes were still damp from the rescue, simply walked back towards the tavern.

On the first floor, he found that all the carpentry work had ceased. Everyone in the room was busy looking at the two people arguing in front of the "Stone Tablet." Flik walked forward to get a better view and found that they were Luc and, somewhat surprisingly, Zamza.

"As the magic instructor for this army," Zamza shouted. "I demand that you join the rest of my students out on the practice field."

Luc sneered. "I'm _your_ student? I could burst your body like an overripe melon if I wanted to."

Zamza's mouth worked furiously as he tried to come up with some retort. Flik took the moment to step towards the two of them and ask, "What's going on here?"

Luc let out an exasperated sigh. Zamza jumped behind Flik and declared, "This mage won't attend my lessons. Shu did make _me_ the magic instructor."

Flik glanced over his shoulder at Zamza. "I don't think Luc needs lessons. He is the student of Lady Leknaat, after all."

Zamza continued to press his argument. "He needs to come out and practice with the other mages. How's he supposed to lead a unit if he's not familiar with the men?"

"As long as they stay out of my way, everything will be fine," Luc shot back. "I can handle my duties on the battlefield by myself."

Zamza did not look pleased. Flik tired to mollify him. "Listen, Luc served in Toran in the Liberation Army, so he knows his way around a battle."

"None of this would happen if I had a room," Zamza retorted, crossing his arms. "How is it that I, the most important member of this army, am still sleeping in a hallway?"

Flik restrained himself from punching Zamza. "If it makes you feel any better, my bedroom is in the tavern."

Zamza walked off, maintaining an air of rarified dignity until he had disappeared. Flik looked back at Luc and found the wind mage glaring at him. "Do you think you understand me?" Luc hissed.

Flik didn't answer. He knew Luc well enough not to expect any thanks for helping him out, but this level of hostility was exceptional.

"You think that because you are lightning, you can even begin to know me? You think you understand, dancing across the night sky, but how readily you seek to be constrained. That is your destiny, to be bound by iron and conducted into the ground. All of your energy will be used to serve others."

The room had grown even quieter as the workers listened to Luc lecture Flik.

"I am the wind," Luc declared. "How can you comprehend me? I am unbounded, the whole world is my domain. I will always strive for freedom, and I shall have it."

Flik held up his hands at chest level, palms towards Luc. "You have your freedom. Nobody's going to make you do anything you don't want to. You can leave at any time."

Luc's face became unnervingly beatific. "Your words are so very illuminating," he said pleasantly. "Now I see that ignorance really is bliss. Be glad that you do not see existence as I do, for that knowledge would surely cause you to go mad."

Flik abandoned the conversation, turning and walking towards the tavern. For once both he and Luc were in total agreement.


	29. Chapter 29 An Old Acquaintance

**Chapter 29 – An Old Acquaintance **

Flik was being followed. He knew it, though he could only catch glimpses over his shoulder of the person stalking him. It was a man with black hair, wearing a long black trench coat. Flik thought about confronting his pursuer, but the figure darted away each time Flik turned around. Moreover, the corridors that Flik was walking down were rarely empty, so he didn't want to draw his sword and run wildly after the man.

The chase continued, Flik tried to shake the shadow by quickly ducking down side hallways and picking up the pace to a jog. His stalker kept with him, apparently untroubled by Flik's efforts. Finally, Flik got the bright idea to lead this man outside, somewhere open where he could be seen clearly. He made his way along the eastern part of Dunan Castle, past the square where many of the children liked to hang out, and down a set of stairs to get to the room with the cisterns.

Here was an exit to the castle, out of which Flik practically ran. Unfortunately, he'd been concentrating on looking back at his pursuer and charged headlong into something large and unyielding. Moments later, he was trying to pick himself off the ground to the sound of somebody's laughter.

"There you are," Viktor said, unaffected by Flik crashing into him. "I've been looking all over the castle for you."

Flik got up, dusted himself off, and looked back for the stalker. "Did you see anyone behind me?" he asked Viktor.

Viktor scratched his chin quizzically. "Not anybody in particular. Of course, there are lots of people in Dunan Castle now. Was it anyone I know?"

"He's wearing a black trench coat and…brown pants, I think. He's been after me since this morning."

Viktor peered back into the castle. "Well, why didn't you call out to him? Or maybe pull your sword and run him down?"

Flik looked aghast. "I couldn't do that. I can't just run up to people and start accusing them of things. What if he's somebody Riou's recruited?"

Viktor smiled. "Would somebody Riou's recruited be following you around for no good reason? Would he stalk you just to menace you?"

Flik thought about that for a moment. "I suppose not."

"Good. Then he's probably got a perfectly good reason for doing that. Just ignore him."

Flik goggled. "Wait, you believe me?"

Viktor shrugged. "Why shouldn't I? You've never been the type to lie before, so if you say that some strange men in black coats are chasing you all over the castle, who am I to doubt it?"

"You don't have to put it like that," Flik groused. "And it was only one man."

"Right, right," Viktor nodded sagely. "By the way, you and I are scheduled for checkups with Doctor Huan. Let's go."

"Are you reading my parts off the duty roster?" Flik inquired.

"Why not?" Viktor laughed. "One of us should know what's going on, and if it's not you, it's got to be me. One of us has to be responsible."

"Well, if you're the responsible one, you should know where Huan's set up his office," Flik said.

"Not a clue," Viktor affirmed. "We'll stumble across it eventually."

They walked back into the castle. Flik scrutinized every shadowy corner, but found no evidence of the man in the black coat. After a while, Viktor and Flik found Doctor Huan's "office." It was actually in an unused part of the storeroom, with a few courtesy screens set up to provide limited privacy.

Huan was speaking to Tsai when Viktor and Flik arrived. "You have a most excellent bill of health. Just keep doing the things that got you there." He noticed the two new patients. "Ah, Flik, you're just in time for your appointment."

A wave of nervousness rushed over Flik. "Are you sure? Maybe you should check again."

Huan motioned him forward. "Now, now, there's nothing to worry about."

Viktor waved cheerfully as Flik ducked around behind the privacy screens. Tuta was over in one corner dunking various pieces of equipment into boiling water. Another corner contained a large cabinet, already stuffed with folders. Finally, there was a smaller writing desk with a stool in front of it.

Huan guided Flik over to the stool. "Sit down and take off your shirt, please."

Goosebumps broke out all over his arms as he unbuckled his cape and pulled his armor and shirt off. The room felt distinctly colder. Huan asked Tuta to bring several pieces of equipment over, but Flik was too busy fretting to make out any of the names. Then the examination began.

Huan came back with a strange device hanging from his ears. It seemed to come together on a small, metal medallion that the doctor placed on Flik's chest. Flik wanted to ask questions, but Huan ordered him to breathe in and out slowly. Huan moved the medallion around on Flik's chest, and later to the back. The medallion was uncomfortably warm from the boiling water and tickled wherever it touched him. Finally the doctor placed the thing over Flik's heart.

"What was that for?" Flik asked as Huan handed the device over to Tuta. Ignoring Flik, the doctor scribbled some notes on a sheet of paper.

He returned with a small, pointed mallet in one hand. "Just relax," he ordered.

Flik didn't have any time to think about it, for the doctor suddenly struck him on the knee. He kicked out violently and toppled off the stool. Looking up at the ceiling, Flik inquired, "Is that everything?" He very much hoped it was.

Huan was chuckling. "Impressive reflexes. No, we've still got some more things to cover. If you would please get back up onto the stool."

Like a good soldier, Flik complied. More tests followed. Huan came back with a lit candle and held it close to Flik's eyes. After that, he felt around in Flik's mouth with a thin, pointy, metallic object. Then Flik stood on a scale he hadn't noted earlier, while the doctor slid little markers back and forth on a metal beam. Finally, the doctor just seemed to start pinching Flik's skin at seemingly random locations.

When that had ended, and Flik found himself still sitting, without his shirt, he asked, "Is it over yet?"

Huan looked up from writing his notes. "I've got a few questions and that'll be it." He nodded to himself. "Let's get to the first: how are your bowels?"

Flik nearly fell off his seat. Recovering, he replied, "Why do you need to know that?"

"Standard question," Huan answered. "Irregular bowel movements can be a sign of digestive problems. We may need to adjust your diet. Have you ever passed blood?"

Flik blanched, his stomach trying to crawl up into his throat. "I…everything's normal down there, I assure you."

Huan chuckled again. "Why is it that warriors always get squeamish whenever I mention things like that? Never mind. Have you ever been hit in the head?"

Flik shrugged. "Sure."

Now Huan frowned. "How many times?"

Flik thought it over, but curiously he couldn't come up with a number. "Don't know. I guess I don't keep track. I'm a warrior, you kind of expect that sort of thing."

Huan clicked his tongue behind his teeth. "You shouldn't be so careless. Even if you think you're protecting your head well, the brain can still be injured if you're hit hard enough. Advanced cases often have difficulty walking and can hardly stand normal light."

Flik suppressed a shudder. Huan continued. "How about this: do you ever have fits of anger for no apparent reason? Do you have repeated nightmares about what happens on the battlefield?"

The second question hit very close to home, and Flik thought long and hard about lying. Huan, however, was looking at him very intently, and he didn't think he'd be able to fool the doctor. Evasively, Flik tried, "Why do you ask?"

Huan's face took on a considering look. "It's something Master Liukan spoke to me about when I was his apprentice. He had the chance to study many soldiers during his days as an army doctor. He found that many veterans experienced those kinds of trouble. It was never too much of a problem as long as they could keep fighting, but once their time in the army was done…"

Huan suddenly sighed deeply. "Nobody ever thinks about what a soldier's supposed to do when the fighting is finished, especially not the soldiers themselves. We were never able to do any studies, but some of those men were never able to adjust to a peaceful life. They'd hurt those around them, or they'd hurt themselves. Usually soldiers like that end up thrown in prison or even executed. Master Liukan thinks that it might be some sort of disease of the brain, and I tend to agree with him."

Flik opened his mouth to speak, but did not. As afraid as he might be of having some disease of the brain, he just couldn't bring himself to talk about things that were intimately personal with a man who was still mostly a stranger.

Huan's serene smile reappeared. "Well, don't give it too much thought. I suppose the only way to eliminate it would be if nobody ever became a soldier. If that happened, who would protect us against enemies?" He checked his notes on his clipboard. "Everything seems fine. I think you're good to go. Just make sure you keep eating right, especially try to eat fruits and vegetables instead of a lot of meat. It'll do you good."

Flik pulled on his shirt and cape and walked out from behind the screen. Viktor was lounging against the wall. "So, looks like you got through that without any major scarring," he said, standing up straight.

Huan followed Flik out. "It's your turn next." He pointed at Viktor, who slouched and followed the doctor behind the screens.

Flik didn't wait up, but wandered off for the tavern to try and settle his stomach with a little food. The tavern was crowded with workers and soldiers. A frazzled looking Leona handed him a ham sandwich and a mug of beer. "If I was able to request anything of our great leader, I'd request that he recruit us a chef next," she declared before rushing off to pull out another loaf of bread. Flik wisely chose not to inquire about how thoroughly she'd cleaned the mug.

Though it seemed to be standing room only, some of Flik's men recognized him and cleared a spot at a table for him to sit. He relaxed over his lunch, eating the sandwich slowly and listening to the men talking. Morale seemed to be good, and many of them were excitedly speaking about Riou's exploits. Never mind that half of those exploits were exaggerated. Out of the corner of his eye, Flik noticed Tuta dart in amongst the crowd and hand a note to Leona.

Minutes later, during a lull in the conversation, Viktor entered the tavern. He looked exceedingly annoyed and people literally dove out of his way as he stomped over to the counter. Leona smiled and handed him a salad and a cup of something that probably wasn't beer.

"Come on, Leona, give me some meat," Viktor pleaded.

She shook her head. "Sorry, Tuta got here ahead of you. Apparently you could stand to lose a little weight."

Viktor looked down at the plate. "Can I at least have some dressing?"

"No," Leona replied emphatically.

Viktor scowled and carried his food over to Flik's table. This time no one needed to clear a space, for the other soldiers at the table simply jumped up out of their chairs. He sat down and looked appreciatively at what was left of Flik's drink. "Mind giving me a swig of that?"

"Don't!" Leona commanded from the bar. "Huan's orders were very specific. You're not to let Viktor mooch off of you."

Flik looked at Viktor and smiled. "Sorry, I fear getting on the bad side of Leona far more than I fear your wrath." He chugged the rest of his drink. Viktor stabbed at a piece of lettuce and managed to crack his plate in half. He picked up the offending piece of greenery and shot it a reproachful look. The lettuce was unmoved.

Looking up, Flik noticed Millie skipping into the tavern with Bonaparte hanging off her shoulder. "Mister Flik, Sir Viktor!" she called, apparently not able to see them. When Flik stood up, she continued. "The strategist Shu wants you two to come up to the great hall right now."

"Did he say anything about why?" Flik asked.

"He said that it had to do with a diplomatic opportunity that he'd been expecting," Millie replied. Bonaparte, possibly spooked by the number of people in the room, jumped off Millie's shoulder and started scampering around.

Viktor stuffed half his salad in his mouth, chewed a couple of times, swallowed, and said, "Let's go see what's up." He grimaced and added, "I hate this stuff. It's so watery…and bland."

He got up and together he and Flik walked towards the exit. Bonaparte had dashed under another table, and the soldiers were enthusiastically trying to collect Millie's pet. "Careful," Millie admonished, holding her white beret in her hands. "You don't want to upset him."

Viktor and Flik were halfway down the hall when they heard a muffled boom and the sound of a table splintering. The soldiers' cheering suddenly turned to startled shouts of panic. Flik looked over at Viktor. Viktor looked back. They continued walking.

Upstairs, they found Gilbert depositing a slip of paper into the recently set up suggestion box. "What's up Gilbert?" Viktor said cheerfully. "Found something to complain about already?"

Gilbert frowned. "Complain about? No, I'm just trying to send a letter to my family up in Zexen. This is the post box, isn't it?"

"No," Flik answered. "It's the suggestion box. You know, people come along and place their ideas in it, and Riou reads them."

"Drat," Gilbert replied and shook the box. "Now what do I do?"

"You could always ask Riou to fish your letter out," Viktor suggested.

Gilbert shook his head, crossing his arms over his blue coat. "That won't do at all. I wouldn't want to waste our leader's time like that. I know; I'll write an explanation and put that in the box."

"Wouldn't that been an even bigger waste of Riou's time?" Flik asked, but Gilbert was already ducking down the stairs.

They entered the great hall. Shu and Apple were there, along with another man who looked up as Viktor and Flik walked towards the dais. It took Flik a moment to recognize the man, an old acquaintance.

Viktor greeted the man. "Hello, Fitcher. It's been a while. I didn't know you'd made it out of Muse."

Fitcher was still wearing his green tunic, beige pants, and wide red headband. He looked a little disheveled with a growth of unshaven stubble around his chin. Still, he sketched out a bow to Viktor and Flik. "I was actually not in the city when it fell, but those were harrowing times nevertheless. Seeing you two here makes me feel much better about the rumors."

"Rumors?" Flik asked.

Fitcher put up his hands defensively. "Well…I'd very much like to know more about this 'Riou' who leads your army. He must be pretty impressive to get renowned warriors like you two to follow."

Viktor cocked his head to the side. "He is inspiring. He went up against Solon Jhee's unit with only three hundred men."

Fitcher nodded, smiling broadly. "So those rumors are true, are they? I would think he's a majestic specimen, very imposing. Could you describe him?"

Viktor laughed. "The thing is, you'd never know it just by looking at him. He's always modest, but in battle he becomes a real tiger. Come to think of it, you probably saw him when he was with us in Muse. He's about this tall-" Viktor placed his hand at neck level, "-has short brown hair, wears red, and has this circlet around his forehead."

Fitcher scoffed and started laughing, slapping his knee with his hand. "You guys, you're all putting on a wonderful joke, aren't you? I've already met with that 'Riou.' He can't be your leader. Please, stop this charade and bring out the real Lord Riou."

Shu glanced over towards the doors leading in, which swung open to admit two figures, and announced, "Excellent timing. Fitcher, permit me to introduce Lord Riou, leader of our Unification Army."

Riou and Nanami were walking in through the door. Riou calmly nodded to Viktor and Flik and extended his hand to Fitcher.

Fitcher's mouth flapped a couple of times. "What? This kid is…this is a joke, right?" He glanced from face to face, reading expressions, and practically toppled over attempting to bow. "Forgive me, Lord Riou. It appears my judgement was off this time." He laughed nervously. "If you remember, I worked for Lady Anabelle, but I was off on a diplomatic mission when the city fell. I'm currently in the employ of Lord Makai, plenipotentiary of Two River City."

Shu nodded in a bored manner. "Let us get to the point: why have you come to visit us, Fitcher?"

"There were rumors of an army that was gathering to fight against Highland, so I wanted to get some information on it." Fitcher paused and deliberated on his next words. "It was very unexpected to hear that you had repulsed the force led by General Solon Jhee." He looked cautiously at Viktor and Flik.

Viktor chuckled. "It was our good fortune."

"Well, that's what I mean when I say 'unexpected,'" Fitcher added. "You might even call it something of a miracle."

"You might," Viktor mused. He paused, thought it out, and suddenly barked, "Wait! Shut up!"

Fitcher nervously backed a few steps away from Viktor and turned to speak with Riou. "That good fortune is why I wanted to meet with your leader." He cleared his throat. "Lord Riou. I wish to invite you to Two River City. Let us negotiate an alliance and work together to crush the Highland menace."

Flik was floored by the audacity of that statement, though he worked hard to keep his surprise off his face. He'd only seen Lord Makai once, at the Hilltop Conference, but hadn't been very impressed by that showing. This was certainly a bold, decisive move. Perhaps it would even be bold enough to get the rest of the alliance working together again.

Shu's expression was very thoughtful. "Is this a formal request from the government of Two River City?"

Fitcher's smile shrank and his eyes darted around the room. "Permit me to speak truthfully, so that we don't get ahead of ourselves. To this point, everything I'm doing is on my own initiative."

Flik was floored by the audacity of that statement and he could feel his face slipping into a surprised expression. "Just a second," he declared. "You're asking for an alliance on your own initiative? Has Lord Makai given you that kind of authority?"

Everybody looked at Fitcher, who blushed. "My official orders were simply to scout the province, but even I can see that it's in our best interests to work together to stand up to Highland."

Flik looked sidelong at Riou. Fitcher's disclosures didn't help matters. It would be good to have Two River's aid, but if Fitcher were too far ahead of his government, any trip there would certainly be wasted. "What do you think, Riou?" Flik asked. "You want to trust this guy?"

Riou smiled. "We have to. If we're going to win, we'll need allies. Sometimes the first move has to be made on faith, right? Let's go to Two River."

Fitcher's smile was enthusiastic. "Great! Perfect! Let's get started on the preparations right now." His smile was gone again. "There…uh…there is one more little thing that you need to take care of."

Flik rubbed his temples. Apple frowned. Shu simply clasped his hands behind his back. Viktor sighed audibly and said, "What would that be?"

Fitcher rubbed his palms together. "You see, uh, the bridges over the Granias River were all destroyed by Highland. I got here by boat, but didn't have enough potch to keep them in my employ. I was wondering if you might, um, have a boat to get us to Two River?"

Viktor advanced on the self-proclaimed emissary. "Are you sure this isn't some plot you've cooked up to get you back across the river?"

Fitcher gave ground, again putting up his hands in a defensive gesture. "I'm sure if you get to Two River, Lord Makai will be willing to talk about an alliance. You have to believe me!"

Shu gestured towards Viktor. "That's enough. Riou has made his decision and we must do our best to support him." He ticked off thoughts on his fingers. "Since you can't go overland, you'll have to go by boat to Lakewest, and then you can walk to Two River. The approach to Lakewest is fairly treacherous, full of shoals. We have boats that can make it, but we'll need a captain who can steer through the shallows."

Viktor shook his head. "I don't know of anyone like that. Are we going to have to go out searching for a good captain?"

Flik remembered something Riou had spoken of recently. "What about Tai Ho and Yam Koo? They're in the area; they helped Riou get across the lake."

Shu nodded. "That is a good choice, but I have one of my own." He walked over to the railing of the dais, picked up a bell that Flik had not noticed earlier, and rang it. A messenger briskly walked into the room. Shu spoke to him. "Go down to the docks and see if a man named Amada is there. If he is, have him summoned to this room. Also, if masters Tai Ho and Yam Koo have made port, they should be invited up too." The messenger ran off to find the summoned men.

Riou looked confused. "Isn't Amada still in Radat?"

Smiling, Shu explained, "After I agreed to come here, I went and had a talk with him. He seemed very impressed by your determination and vigor, so I prevailed on him to come here as quickly as he could. Meanwhile, we need to decide who will be going with you to Two River."

"Viktor or I should go," Flik commented. "He may need protection while in Two River."

Shu shook his head. "No. You are both too famous. If either of you went, it might suggest that Riou is simply a figurehead. That's one insinuation that we don't want sticking to him. Moreover, we must be alert to any moves by Highland. I don't want one of my best generals off where I can't use him should the need arise. Now let's consider who is going."

After some conversation, it was decided that Oulan would serve as bodyguard for Riou and Nanami. Eilie, unsurprisingly, rushed into the room and stated that she would be joining Riou on this trip. Somewhat more surprisingly, Millie also came in and declared that she wanted to go.

"I have a rune too," she added, proudly displaying the water rune on her right hand. "Mister Flik said that if I got a rune, I could go out and fight."

"I don't believe I said it exactly like that," Flik muttered.

"This is fine," Shu said. "We're looking for good will, not trying to intimidate them into submission. I think this is enough."

Three more people were ushered into the room. Flik recognized the first two immediately, for they had been in the Toran Liberation Army. Tai Ho was in the lead, sandaled feet echoing on the floor, his beige robe tied closed with a red sash. He also had a bit of hemp rope tied around his forehead as a headband, holding his short brown hair in check. He was smiling and fingered his well-trimmed beard thoughtfully. His sworn brother Yam Koo followed, garbed in a simple blue robe. His blond hair was perpetually unkempt, and his expression often seemed to be a frown. Nothing was different about him this time.

The third man was a large and powerfully built. His musculature was obvious because all he seemed to be wearing was a tattered, very short, multicolored robe. He had it open at the top, showing off his healthy, tanned chest. His black hair was tied off in the back. He smiled, walked over to Riou, and greeted him with, "Glad to see you again. I had you pegged as a winner and it seems I was right."

"Who're you?" Viktor asked.

"You should watch who you annoy," the man replied testily. "I'm Amada. I met Riou in Radat and came all the way here just to help you."

Tai Ho, meanwhile, was ogling Oulan. She gave him a fierce glower. Yam Koo stepped beside his brother and pointed to Viktor and Flik. Tai Ho suddenly seemed to recognize the two mercenaries and laughed heartily. "You two are supposed to be dead," he commented.

"We know," Flik answered.

Tai Ho continued to laugh. "I thought I saw you. Remember, that night at Coronet, before the storm?"

Shu cleared his throat. "Gentlemen, we'll have time for reminiscing later. I have jobs for all of you."

This perked the ears of the three boatmen. Tai Ho spoke, "I've already seen that Riou has luck with the dice and now I know he's also blessed in battle, so I'll help him out."

Yam Koo shook his head. "That's just like you, brother. You're always jumping into adventures without a care in the world."

Tai Ho laughed. "Well, I leave all of my worrying to you. I'll gladly trade that for more excitement."

"You'll have your fill of excitement," Shu promised. "First, Amada, I need you to take Riou and his company to Lakewest."

Amada grinned. "Is that all? I'll have them there before tomorrow morning."

"You sure about that," Viktor asked. "That approach can be treacherous."

Amada glared at Viktor. "Listen carefully. Don't ever question the sailing abilities of an Island Nations man. I swear on the name of Admiral Skald Egan that I will get them safely to Lakewest."

"Skald Egan?" Flik asked.

"That name is as good as any," Shu answered. "I believe that you are able."

"What about us?" Tai Ho interrupted. "I didn't come here to stand in the shadow of someone from the south. What do you want us to do?"

"Don't worry," Shu said. "You're job isn't any less dangerous. I need you to sail north and track the progress of the Highland Army. I want to know if they make any sudden moves."

Tai Ho's smile was enthusiastic. "Okay, I can help you there. I assure you that you'll know if a Highland soldiers so much as pisses into Lake Dunan."

"I don't need to know that much," Shu observed dryly.

"We need to shove off," Amada announced. "The tide's good right now and I don't want to miss it."

This set off a flurry of activity as people raced to see that Riou and his band had enough supplies to see them to Two River. Furthermore, everybody wanted to be there when he departed, shaking his hand and offering him good fortune. The crowds persisted down onto the docks, where Amada was readying his ship. The supplies were stowed and they were just about to depart when a newcomer walked down the pier and shouted, "Wait!"

An intimidating figure strode down the planking as the crowd parted. He was dressed in a long, gray cloak with his hood up, revealing only a little of his sharp face and the blond bangs that hung down around his eyes. Olive pant legs flashed as he confidently walked towards Amada's boat. His weapon was slung across his back, a long, thin, cylindrical object of metal and wood.

Viktor and Flik drew their swords and barred his path. He stared at them for a long moment, snorted, and said, "You two were supposedly dead."

"We get that a lot," Flik responded, realizing who this was. The figure pulled back his hood, revealing his pale face to the world. He was Clive, an enigmatic man who'd joined the Toran Liberation Army in the closing stages of the war two years ago.

Clive glanced at Viktor and Flik. "So now you know who I am. Let me past, I have words for your leader, Lord Riou."

Riou had come up to stand on the railing of Amada's boat. "Let him through," he ordered. Reluctantly, Viktor and Flik stood aside.

Clive walked up and studied Riou silently for several minutes. "When we last met, you foiled me," he said tersely. "Inadvertently, otherwise I would've killed you. Still, she got away and it was your fault. Now you have a chance to help me. My target has gone to Lakewest. Since you are going there, I want you to take me along."

Riou looked at Clive. "Join my army, and I'll help you track her down."

"So long as our interests are pointed in the same direction, I'll aid you. If helping you bring peace back to this land will get me to Elza that much quicker, so be it." He jumped over the railing into the boat.

Oulan frowned dubiously at the new passenger. Amada and his crew quickly pulled in the last of the ropes and the oars got them underway. Viktor and Flik watched until they'd rounded the end of the harbor and disappeared from sight.


	30. Chapter 30 Back by Morning

**Chapter 30 – Back by Morning**

Water gently murmured outside the window. The sake in the bowl on the table rippled back and forth in motion with the boat. Outside, Yam Koo was busy hauling up ropes. Flik shook himself out of his daze. Tai Ho, seated directly across from him, was speaking to Viktor, who sat to the side. After Riou departed, Tai Ho had invited the two mercenaries over to his boat for a little afternoon reminiscing.

"Kimberley was following me around everywhere," Tai Ho explained and sipped from his drink. "Let me tell you, there's nothing worse than some woman hanging off of you, poking her nose into all of a man's affairs. It's like having an anchor strung around your neck." He squinted at Viktor and Flik, as if expecting their affirmation. Flik smiled half-heartedly, uneasy from the combination of the stronger-than-expected drink and the gentle rocking of the boat. Viktor, in better spirits, or maybe drunk beyond all thinking, nodded vigorously.

Tai Ho laughed, sipped his sake, and started coughing violently. Somehow he managed to keep his bowl steady, peering at it through glazed eyes. He set his drink down on the table and added, "Turns out Kun To came through for us. Said he had a job for us up north, running goods past port inspectors. It was the perfect opportunity. We make a little potch and get far away from that woman. I tell you, even my brother jumped at the job, and he's usually such a worrier." He fingered at his beard as if suddenly surprised to find it on his chin. "Enough about me. What happened to you two? Tir only said that you had to stay behind in the castle. We really did think you were dead."

"It's a long story," Viktor said and reached across the table to grab the bottle of sake. He upended it over his bowl, but nothing came out. Nonplussed, he brought the hole of the container up to eye level. After a cursory inspection, he stuck his index finger into the bottle.

Yam Koo pushed aside the reed mat covering the entrance, looked around the room, and announced, "We're ready to get underway, brother. You do remember that the strategist wants us to go looking for the Highland Army? Your chat will have to wait until we return."

Tai Ho frowned. "That won't do at all. There's nothing like a good story to spice up a dull voyage, especially a good story that I haven't heard." Viktor tried to pull his finger out and found it was stuck. He gave it a much more violent tug, to no better effect. Tai Ho's face brightened. "I know, why don't you two join us on our little trip? Two more sets of eyes would make it twice as likely that we'll locate the Highland Army."

Yam Koo shook his head. "I don't really see how that works. Besides, you think they're in any condition to help?" Viktor banged the bottle down on the table, hard. Then he swung it at the wooden wall of the room. Neither effort changed anything.

Tai Ho started laughing again. "A little lake voyage is just what they need to sober up. Works for me all the time. What do you say, Flik?"

Flik was having trouble saying anything at the moment. He blamed it on the effects of the drink. Various half-formed arguments were skittering around in his head, but he couldn't seem to grasp any one firmly. He slowly responded, "Can't. Got things to do in the morning. Men will have to be trained."

Viktor looked up from trying to will the bottle off his finger. "Aw, the men can use a break. One day off isn't going to hurt them." He brought his hand up to scratch his head. It was the hand with the bottle stuck on it. The bottle conked against his head and broke, clay shards clattering onto the floor. The spout was still firmly stuck on his index finger though.

Tai Ho stood up and swayed with the motion of the boat. Flik hoped he was swaying with the motion of the boat. "It's no problem," Tai Ho said. "We can get you back by morning easily. Afternoon at the latest. It'll be an adventure, don't you think?"

"Why not?" Viktor replied, which served as an answer for both him and Flik. "I don't want to be cooped up in that castle all the time."

Tai Ho clapped his hands. "Right. Brother, let's get this boat under way."

Yam Koo sighed. "All right. You had better come help me with the sail; I think there's a south wind coming up."

The two fishermen darted out of the little cabin, Tai Ho showing no ill effects from his drinking. Viktor was still puzzling over how to get the spout off his finger. Flik cautiously staggered out into the sunlight, squinting as it hit him on the face. The sun was sinking through a haze of clouds, and, just as Yam Koo had said, there was a wind out of the south. The temperature was distinctly warmer than just a few hours ago.

Yam Koo came back towards the stern of the boat with a pole in his hand and pushed off from the pier. The sail billowed under the wind and the craft lurched forward, cutting through the water. Flik watched as Dunan Castle receded into the distance. It was strange; the whole town looked more and more alive. Scaffolding covered parts of the structure, where workmen were busy patching cracks and opening up new rooms. There were more ships at the docks, too. As they departed the harbor, they passed a ship coming in. It was a small fishing trawler, but it was filled to the brim with its catch. All those fish would go to feed the army and the people assembling there.

Tai Ho, holding a pair of fishing rods, ambled back to where Flik was standing. He sniffed at the wind. "It's a good wind," he declared. "Powerful. It's traveled far to get here and will travel far past. Can you smell it? It carries the scents of earth and water from distant lands." Flik shrugged noncommittally; all he could tell was that it was getting uncomfortably warm and humid and he had a headache.

Tai Ho handed him one of the two poles. "Come on, we've got to catch supper if we're going to eat." He glanced at Yam Koo. "Brother, you mind the rudder. Keep us in clear water until we're at the outflow of the Lana River." Yam Koo nodded in a distracted manner, since he was already watching their course.

Flik looked dubiously at the simple rod. "I haven't done much fishing."

Tai Ho pulled up a bucket of bait, some of it still wriggling. "No problem. Fishing's all about waiting for the proper moment anyway." He stuck a worm onto the end of his hook. "Just cast and see what's biting." He walked over to the other side of the ship and followed his own advice. Flik speared a worm on his hook and lofted his line out into Lake Dunan. Viktor, having somehow removed the spout from around his index finger, strolled out of the cabin to join them.

"So, about this story?" Tai Ho asked.

"That's right," Viktor said. "I was going to tell you all about our escape from Gregminster Castle." He rubbed his hands together. "As I said, it's a long story, but it begins right after Flik took that arrow in his leg." Flik looked down and found that he was unconsciously rubbing the spot on his lower right thigh.

"Things were looking pretty bad," Viktor continued. "There were twenty, maybe thirty Imperial soldiers. It was one of the most difficult battles I've ever been in."

"What are you talking about?" Flik interjected. "We would've both died except that I still had enough strength to use my lightning rune."

Viktor coughed. "As I was saying. Things were looking pretty bad, and it was all Flik and I could do to hold them off. Eventually, all of the shaking spooked them and they ran."

The Star Dragon Sword on Viktor's back started rattling and popped halfway out of its sheath before Viktor could clamp two hands on it. "You are not going to forget to mention that it was I who brought down that ceiling on those soldiers and secured your escape," the sword threatened. "It just wouldn't do to have my servant stuck full of holes by somebody unworthy of my greatness."

Viktor glowered. "Wait a minute, are you saying you'd desert me if someone stronger came along?"

The sword continued to lecture Viktor. "Your greatest weakness is that you fail to remember just how close to death you come. It makes you brave…and stupid. This trait is useful to me, in moderation. I can't have you foolishly rushing to your death against mere humans, not when there are so many demons that need defeating."

"Bah!" Viktor groused, jamming the sword back into place. "Can't a guy embellish a little? Now where was I?"

Tai Ho laughed. "The Star Dragon Sword had just brought the ceiling down."

"That's right," Viktor affirmed, then paused, thought about what he was agreeing with, and glared at nobody in particular. "Well, the fight was over, and it was a good thing too, because Flik's leg gave out, and he collapsed to the floor. I had to pick him up and carry him out across my shoulders. He was bleeding quite a bit, so I didn't want to try and make my way back to the entrance. Luckily, all of that shaking had opened up some holes in the walls, and we escaped out one of those."

The story was interrupted when Flik's fishing pole nearly jerked out of his hands and over the side. He braced his feet against the railing and tried to reel his catch in. Tai Ho turned from his line and called out advice. "Slowly now, don't want to rip the head off that thing." Flik tried his best to follow the advice. Whatever was on his hook seemed to be resisting, but not trying to take his line in any awkward directions. Eventually he pulled his line up and grasped the catch. It was a brown boot with the sole hanging off partway. Tai Ho chuckled. "Well, you find more of those than you'd think possible, honestly. Maybe a boat full of shoes went down a long time ago. Anyway, toss that back in and try again."

Viktor sat down. "So we got out of there, but Flik's still got the arrow stuck in his leg. I had to push it all the way through to get it out. After that, he was still bleeding and now completely unconscious. I wasn't sure he was even going to survive getting back to the army encampments, so I carried him to one of the clinics in the city. It took a whole lot of potch to convince that doctor to sew him up, but he finally stopped the bleeding."

"Why didn't you inform somebody then?" Yam Koo inquired. "Liukan would've helped you, for sure."

Viktor shrugged. "There was a lot going on -Mathiu's death, seeing to wounded soldiers and civilians- I didn't want to bother him. Besides, the war was over; everybody was turning to matters of how to govern. I didn't want to get caught up in all that political stuff."

Flik considered his friend's words. He felt that the latter statement about politics had the ring of truth to it, rather than Liukan being busy. He'd never questioned Viktor on his reasons for the disappearing act. However, it stuck him that the odds were good that Viktor would've left quickly after the fall of Gregminster regardless of what happened. Viktor liked direct action and fighting for causes, but he was out of his element with politicking and office holding.

Tai Ho chortled. "I agree with you there, friend. Yam Koo and I were out of Gregminster as soon as the parties died down. I wasn't about to get tasked with commanding a naval squadron, or, worse, writing reports about commanding a naval squadron."

"I had another reason for not wanting to be tied down," Viktor commented. "While I was in South Window trying to convince Granmeyer and Gustav of Tinto to attack Moravia, Anabelle sent me a message asking for my help after the war was over. I wasn't about to refuse a request from her. As soon as Flik was stable, I started to discretely gather some of our colleagues from the war."

Flik shook his head. "It took me almost two months to recover from the wound. I was just lucky it didn't get infected."

"Yeah, while you were in bed recovering, all sorts of problems popped up," Viktor explained. "First there was Tir McDohl's disappearance and then war with Jowston. Everybody was a little paranoid at that moment, especially since the new government wasn't completely formed. I don't think Lepant would've looked too kindly on me raising a force to go help Jowston right in the middle of his own capital. As soon as Flik was ready for travelling, we up and left."

"And you took us right through the badlands," Flik added. "You nearly killed us all over again."

"It wasn't _that_ much trouble," Viktor shot back. "Besides, it was faster than climbing up into the mountains and going through Banner Pass."

"Not that much trouble?" Flik replied incredulously. "We only had to dodge patrols from three different armies while trying not to starve or die of thirst."

"As I said, no problem. In the end, we got to Jowston and made our way to Muse, where Anabelle told us that she needed an independent force to help her defend against Highland. We got together some more men, built a fort in East Muse, and that's where we were when this whole thing got started."

Tai Ho laughed and casually pulled up a fish. "What a story. You ought to have somebody write that down. It's far too good to just be forgotten."

There wasn't much talking after that. Tai Ho caught four more fish in the time Flik needed to wrestle one of his own onto the boat. Six seemed to be enough, and Tai Ho pulled out a knife and began gutting the catch. Yam Koo got up from the tiller long enough to set up a small iron stove and the fish were set to cook. They were served without any spicing, alongside some stringy bean pods. It wasn't a great meal, the fish was too muddy for Flik's taste, but it was food.

The clouds that had built up during the afternoon descended with the dusk. It began to drizzle, not really raining, but something more substantial than mist. Combined with the darkness, visibility became a problem. Tai Ho scurried to set lanterns on the bow and aft of the boat, while Viktor and Flik stood to each side on lookout.

The wind was still out of the south, becoming slightly cooler now that the sun was down. Everything was very quiet, except for ropes and cloth straining in the breeze and the boat chopping across the water. Flik, stationed on the port side of the boat, squinted into the moisture, trying to pick out the shoreline. He couldn't see anything; both water and land were black to his eyes.

"Bring us closer in to the shore," Tai Ho said, a slight tension on his voice.

"Just don't run us up on any rocks, Brother," Yam Koo answered back.

Flik tried to maintain his composure as Tai Ho called out the depth readings. His eyes kept picking out shapes on the water, but those shapes always disintegrated before he could work up the nerve to call them out. Mist was rising up from the water, driven along by the wind.

Viktor laughed nervously. "So, anyone know where we are?"

"No worries yet," Tai Ho replied. "We're not anywhere too far off course. Any minute now, I think."

Flik thought he felt the boat shift under his feet, but wondered if the feeling hadn't been conjured up by his imagination. Apparently it wasn't, for Yam Koo called out, "Change in the current. The water's coming out of the west."

"Outflow of the Lana River, I reckon," Tai Ho suggested. "Take us in closer; let's see what's happening on the north bank of the river."

Yam Koo angled the boat towards the still unseen north shore, using the wind to help fight the sluggish current. Flik peered towards the bow of the ship, where Tai Ho continued to call out depths. They seemed to be getting closer, but Flik couldn't see any evidence of land.

All of a sudden the boat smashed into something unyielding, coming to an abrupt halt with the sound of timbers splintering. Tai Ho pitched forward over the prow, carrying the front lantern off with him. Flik stumbled a few steps and caught the railing.

Yam Koo jumped to his feet, grabbing a long pole. "Come on! We've got to get off of whatever we're stuck on." He ran up to the prow of the ship, looked down, and remarked, "Well, at least we've found what we were looking for."

Flik had to walk forward a few more feet before the meaning of those words became clear. Tai Ho and Yam Koo's fishing boat had ridden up on to the flat deck of a hastily constructed wooden transport barge. Tai Ho was up on his feet, pushing against the prow of their boat while Yam Koo worked with his pole to try and free them. Viktor and Flik took up poles to help. Tai Ho's lantern was just beginning to burn a tarp that it had shattered against.

A few more moments of muscle work got the boat off the barge, but Tai Ho's momentum carried him into the river. Yam Koo stuck out his pole to aid his sworn brother up and over the railing. In the red glare of the burning barge, Flik could see dozens of similar craft up and down the north bank of the Lana River. There was even enough light to see the first row of Highland tents up on the bank.

Flik glanced at the flags over those tents. He had seen them before, fought against those soldiers before, back at the fort in East Muse. "That's the Highland Third Army," he commented. "Kiba Windamier is the commander, I think."

Shouts were rising out of the camp. "Let's just get out of here," Viktor said.

"I'm doing my best," Yam Koo responded, grabbing the tiller. The boat banged against another barge, then spun off, helped along by Tai Ho and Viktor's pole work. They drifted downstream with the current, but the south wind was also driving them towards the north shore.

The barge that they had crashed into was now fully aflame, and Flik could see people working to cut it loose from its fellows. However, that light illumed more than the Highland efforts. Flik distinctly heard someone shout, "Intruders on the river!"

"What now?" Viktor asked.

"We wait for the river to take us back out onto Lake Dunan," Tai Ho responded calmly. "There'll be room enough to hide there."

"You know this for a fact?" Flik asked.

Tai Ho laughed. "I'm a smuggler. I've been dodging authorities all my life, so we shouldn't have too many problems with Highlanders in barges."

Arrows started splashing into the water. They weren't close, yet, but the wind was pushing the boat closer inshore. Viktor looked pointedly up at the billowing sail. "Shouldn't we take that down?"

"Not unless we want to get caught," Tai Ho replied. "Listen."

There was more splashing in the water. Not the little pinpricks of arrows, but the much broader sound of oars. Flik glanced over his shoulder and saw the shadowy outline of a galley coming down the river towards them.

"Steady course," Tai Ho commanded. "We're almost to the lake."

Flik peered ahead, but the light from the fire was failing, and he couldn't see more than a few shadows. An arrow plunked down hard on the planking of the boat. Flik started and felt another cut the air near his arm. Yam Koo scrambled up from the tiller and, pulling Flik along, ducked under the cover of the back side of the cabin. Viktor and Tai Ho joined them momentarily.

Arrows clattered down on the boat, sticking into the roof and walls of the cabin, impacting on the exposed deck and ripping into the sail, but none of them managed to drop down onto the back side of the cabin. The four men endured the assault for a few more minutes, and then they were out of range, sailing out into the darkness and onto the waters of the lake.

Flik permitted himself a few moments to feel relief. He also noted that he was quite damp from the mist and his own sweat. Then he got his bearings. "We're going north. Dunan Castle is that way." He pointed off to the stern.

"Ah, but the wind is taking us _this_ way," Tai Ho observed. "Outrunning the Highland Army comes before getting home, I'm afraid." Flik could hear, but not see, the pursuing galley. Yam Koo shuttered the aft lamp and sat by the tiller. Tai Ho gave Viktor and Flik each a pole. "Feel around for rocks, if you would, and cry out if you find one. Not too loud, though. Maybe we can get the Highlanders to run up against something."

Flik obeyed as well as he was able, poking out into the darkness with his pole. Nothing happened, he slapped the water each time. The sound of the Highland pursuit gradually began to slacken, replaced by water foaming against rocks. He worked more furiously, sure that he was going to feel something hard with each probe. He didn't find anything.

After a while, Tai Ho had his brother swung the craft further out towards the east, pulling away from the coastline. The sound of the reefs faded away, replaced by the droning slap of water against the boat. The drizzle and the clouds continued, making little visible.

"We're going to come up on the north shore of the lake sooner or later," Yam Koo announced softly.

"Take us east, then," Tai Ho muttered. "Let's get some distance between us and any pursuit."

The boat slipped around a few more degrees, though Flik was unable to take any bearing. He wondered if either fisherman could. Now that the danger had passed, he felt drained, tired, and chilly. Sitting back from the railing, he leaned on the side of the cabin and passed into an uneasy sleep.

And woke to an argument. "We have no idea if it will even work the way he said it would," Yam Koo said heatedly, surprising Flik with his vehemence. "We should try to outrun them to the northeast instead."

That got Flik up in a hurry. Blinking rapidly in the morning sunlight, he spotted the two sworn brothers and Viktor standing to the aft of the ship, all looking back to the rear. Flik stood up and located what had them so concerned. A Highland galley, the same one or different he could not determine, was bearing down on them from about a mile away, oars working the water.

"All we'll do is come up against the shore," Tai Ho countered. "That'd be fine if this was a regular smuggling run, where all we had to worry about was evading some fat port administrator. We do that now, and we'll have to abandon the boat in the middle of enemy territory. I'm not too keen on trying to walk back to Dunan Castle."

Yam Koo looked back at the Highland ship and then at the northern shore. He frowned. "I don't like this at all, but you're right. We might as well see if this rune works."

"What rune is this?" Flik asked, yawning out the rest of his fatigue.

"It's from Falena," Tai Ho affirmed. "The merchant called it the Flow Rune. It's supposed to allow your boat to sail without the use of wind or oars, kind of like Kamandohl's engine."

"If it works," Yam Koo added. "That merchant said it was experimental. I think he was just trying to unload a dud rune."

"Whatever," Tai Ho interjected. "Let's get this boat pointed to the south and see what happens." Yam Koo sat down and pulled the tiller over, in a few short moments they were facing the correct direction. Flik glanced back to his right, the Highland galley was closer.

"We're ready," Yam Koo said.

"Let's do it," Tai Ho answered.

"Should we…uh…hold on to anything?" Viktor asked.

The boat suddenly lurched forward through the water, the prow lifting slightly up out of the lake. Flik snatched at the closest railing, wrapping both arms around it. Viktor had more casually used one hand to secure himself. Tai Ho braced himself only by flexing his knees, his laughter flowing back to Flik on the breeze.

They were moving, though, much faster than either wind or oars would normally carry them. The Highland ship rapidly receded, shrinking away on the horizon. Flik gradually got used to the pitch of the deck, relaxed, and let go of the railing, enjoying the wind through his hair. The day was hot, but the sky was mostly clear, and the sunlight shined brilliantly off the waters of the lake.

"It works!" Tai Ho shouted. "Nobody will ever be able to catch us now!"

"If it doesn't destroy the rudder first," Yam Koo added.

They crossed the lake much more quickly than Flik thought possible. In little more than an hour the southern shore was visible.

"Little bit to starboard," Tai Ho admonished.

"I'm trying," Yam Koo shouted back. "Any more than a little bit and we'll go flying off straight towards the western shore. Any more than that and all we'll do is spin in circles."

Viktor glanced ahead. "You're going to want to avoid that ship in front of us." Flik looked, there was a boat in front of them, growing larger by the second.

"I know," Yam Koo replied, gritting his teeth.

Viktor frowned. "You're going to want to avoid it pretty damn quickly, I think."

Flik flinched away from his railing as Tai Ho's boat skimmed past the prow of a much larger galley. Looking back as the ship shrank away, he thought he could just make out a few of their curses. He brought his eyes forward; they were closing on the harbor of Dunan Castle very rapidly.

The boat rode up the crest of a swell, went airborne, and landed back into the water with the sound of wood cracking. The craft began to vibrate, jerking from side to side, but held the course generally.

"Rudder's going," Yam Koo declared, suddenly very calm.

"Just a little further," Tai Ho shouted, as they sped into the harbor.

There were more ships here, and Yam Koo had to fight the tiller to get around them. After another particularly close dodge, the tiller splintered away, leaving the fisherman holding only the handle. The boat began to fly through the water at erratic headings, at one point nearly completing a wide circle.

"Can't you turn that rune off?" Flik yelled as the boat veered towards the cliff face.

Tai Ho shrugged. "I haven't figured that out yet."

The boat passed close to one of the piers. "I suggest that we abandon ship," Yam Koo offered.

Tai Ho glanced at the approaching rock wall. "She was a good little ship, but I heartily agree." He rolled over the railing and back dove into the water. Yam Koo followed, and then Viktor. Flik took one more look at the rocky cliffs and the water foaming up against them. He jumped overboard, stretching into one of the dives drilled into him as a youth in the Warrior's Village. Unfortunately, the water came up at him much more quickly than during those practices. It also felt a whole lot harder when he hit it.

Flik fought through the pain, got his bearings, and swam for the water's surface. He came up and kicked his way towards the pier, relieved to find that all of his extremities were in working order. A crowd of dock workers waited there, offering hands to help pull him up. After planting his feet firmly on the wooden planking, he looked around and spotted Viktor, Tai Ho, and Yam Koo, all safely on the pier. Tai Ho walked over, slapped him on the shoulder, and said, "See, I told you we'd get back by morning."

Flik glanced up into the sky, the sun was still well short of noon. It appeared that Tai Ho was correct, but Flik glanced over at the wreckage of the fisherman's boat. All that could be seen was a flotsam of boards over near the rocks, bobbing up and down on the waves. He shook his head; he certainly didn't want another adventure like that any time soon.


	31. Chapter 31 Stand Alone

**Chapter 31 - Stand Alone**

Flik stood next to Viktor up in the great hall, trying manfully to avoid Shu's cool gaze as the strategist appraised the four men who'd returned from the scouting mission. "Let's see if I have the facts correct," Shu said tersely. "My two most important generals decided to shirk their duties, needlessly put themselves in danger, and nearly destroyed half the harbor, not to mention putting the lives of many of the dock workers in jeopardy, all because they couldn't wait to talk with some old comrades. Am I right?" Apple, standing to the side of Shu, shook her head despairingly.

Viktor took a step forward. "Um…the fact that we nearly destroyed the harbor wasn't our fault. Everything would've turned out fine, except that the rudder-"

"Silence!" Shu snapped and then collected himself. "I am very disappointed in all of you."

Flik walked up beside Viktor. "You're right. We should've thought about the potential consequences of our actions a little more."

Shu turned his icy stare on Flik, causing him to stop mid-speech. "It's easy enough to say those things now. Why didn't you think them beforehand?"

Flik looked down at the strategist's feet; there was nothing that he could say that would get them out of this. Tai Ho spoke up. "Don't blame them, chief. I was the one who talked them into this."

Flik thought he could feel Shu's eyes lifting off him. "Yet they should've had the wisdom to refuse your offer, foolish as it was. Did no one think of the poor example that you've set for your men? Did no one think of what would've happened if either of you two had died? Did you think that our position was so secure that you can risk yourselves on a lark? Anybody?"

Shu paced back and forth, waiting for an answer. Yam Koo, the only one who hadn't yet spoken, wisely kept his mouth closed. Shu sighed, dropping his posture just a little. "We are not that strong yet," he said softly. "As you should well know. Any one of the Highland Armies outnumbers us; all four would easily crush us. None of us can stand alone, we all must work together if we are to emerge victorious."

He came to a halt next to Apple, expression even. "Therefore, I will overlook your transgression this once. I ask that you display better judgment in your choices next time. Meanwhile, we must focus our attention to the crisis at hand. Apple, a synopsis of our thinking, if you would?"

Apple cleared her throat. "Based on your observations, we believe half of the Highland Third Army -five thousand men- is encamped on the north bank of the Lana River. They are competently led by Kiba Windamier and his son, Klaus. Kiba's reputation as a defensive genius is well earned, based on his defense of Fort Rhetto. However, he is perfectly adequate on offense as well. Their current position is especially troubling, as they could strike at either us or Two River City with relative ease."

Shu cut Apple off with a motion of his hand. "I do not believe he intends to attack us. That was Solon Jhee's responsibility. Not enough time has elapsed for Luca Blight to change his strategic plan. Therefore, Kiba's army will most certainly move against Two River."

Flik nodded. "Riou just left for that city, we can't let either it or him fall to Highland. If we took the entire army, we could meet Kiba with equal numbers."

"No," Shu responded forcefully. "We cannot afford to meet Kiba on equal terms as it would leave this castle without a defense. Regardless of what I said a minute ago, Kiba's too good not to take advantage of a tactical blunder. We shall have to rely on other allies to help us in this fight." He looked over to where the duty messenger for the day stood waiting. "Summon Gengen and Kinnison, quickly." The messenger bowed and dashed off.

Shu turned back to the group. "Viktor, ready your companies. We must transport them across the Granias River quickly if they are to be of any help. Apple, I need you to arrange the shipping immediately. I don't care how much potch you need to bribe the captains with. Tai Ho, go with her. You shall make amends by being the chief pilot and navigator for this expedition. Show me how well you know the local currents."

Tai Ho smiled. "No problem there, chief. If we get enough boats, I'll have all of Viktor's men across in an hour or two." He, Yam Koo, Viktor, and Apple walked from the room, passing Gengen and Kinnison, who were entering. Shiro, though uninvited, padded along softly at Kinnison's heels.

Flik looked at Shu. "You want me to get my men ready?"

Shu nodded to the new arrivals and turned back to Flik, shaking his head. "Only your best squad. Your role in this operation will be escort, not military combat."

Flik tried not to let his disappointment show. "As you wish, sir."

Shu arched his eyebrows but then addressed the kobold. "Captain Gengen, I have a very important mission for you." Flik rolled his eyes, wondering why Shu would put up with the farce of calling Gengen a captain.

Gengen nodded enthusiastically, his tongue lolling momentarily before he snapped back to attention. "Captain Gengen is always ready to serve. Say the word." He barked to emphasize his point.

Shu smiled faintly. "I need you to bear a message to Kobold Village, south of Two River City. You must tell them that General Ridley needs their aid in repelling a Highland attack on Two River. Can you give them that message?"

Gengen barked again. "General Ridley needs Kobold Village's help to fight the Highland army at Two River. I've got it!"

"Good." Shu turned his attention to Kinnison and Shiro. "Kinnison, I will need your path-finding skills on this operation. The main road west from Lakewest is likely to be crawling with Highland scouts. You will need to guide Gengen and his escort cross country until you are all beyond Highland eyes. Then you may take the Tigermouth Road south to Kobold Village."

"I understand," Kinnison responded confidently.

Shu looked back at Flik. "Your men are the escort. Get Gengen through to Kobold Village. Their aid is essential."

"I understand the situation," Flik affirmed.

Shu seemed to read Flik closely. "I believe you do. I'll have Apple task a boat for getting you across the river. I expect you to move out as soon as you've gathered your men, Flik. All of you are dismissed."

Flik walked quickly from the great hall, with Gengen and Kinnison following. Though Dunan Castle was always busy these days, there was now an added intensity to people's movements. Word that something military was up seemed to have filtered through the community, evidenced by children's excited voices, worried women speaking in hushed tones, and men racing through the halls gathering their gear.

Outside, the men of Viktor's companies were rushing into formation, some of them strapping on armor as they fell into ranks. Viktor waved jauntily when he noticed Flik. Flik only had time to wave back before jogging towards the town and the temporary barracks for his men.

His men were already assembling as Flik approached. Rossgard walked Flik's horse, Nightstar, towards him. "Rumors are flying all around town, but the gist of it seems to be that an operation is about to happen, so I got the men ready."

Flik chuckled a little ruefully. "For once I don't need all of the men. The strategist has given us a different task." Rossgard's eyebrows jumped questioningly. "Pick the best squad out of your company; they're to come with me on an escort mission. You, too, I'll want you as the second-in-command." Flik looked over his men thoughtfully. "Might as well not waste your good work; tell the other senior sergeants to treat this as a surprise inspection. I'll want to read their reports on unit readiness."

Some of Flik's men looked disappointed as they were dismissed to quarters; others simply looked relieved. He glanced at Kinnison. "You know how to ride?"

"I can handle myself on horseback," Kinnison replied. "But once we're in rough country, I'll probably be able to walk just as quickly as you can ride."

"How long do you think it'll take to get us there?"

"I don't really know the land as well as I did the forests in East Muse," Kinnison answered. "The distance will be shorter than taking the roads, but the terrain is much more difficult." He paused thoughtfully. "What I'd really like is a nice map of the region."

"Excuse me," Rossgard said, walking back from selecting the escort squad. "If you need a map, I heard that the young mapmaker who was in Muse just showed up today.

"Templeton is here?" Flik mused. "Send someone to get him. Ask him if he's got any maps of the Two River region."

While one of the soldiers was sent to get the cartographer, Flik briefly explained the mission to the squad Rossgard had chosen. A few minutes later, Templeton came jogging up, carrying several rolled papers under his arms. "Hello there, Flik," the young man said, swatting some dirty blond hair away from his eyes. "You didn't say what particular region of Two River you were interested in, so I brought as many maps as I could carry." He looked around at the muddy street dubiously. "Do you have a table I could spread them out on?"

A table was dragged out, and Templeton unrolled his papers over it. Flik looked at the assorted maps and asked, "You have one showing the land between Lakewest and Kobold Village?"

Templeton leafed through a couple sheaves of paper and finally pulled one out. "I have a provincial map that shows both towns, but that's about it. Most of my maps have to do with Two River City itself."

"That's fine," Flik responded. "Kinnison, Gengen, look at this map and tell me if there's anything in particular that should concern me."

Kinnison frowned over the parchment. "There are two lakes, and it shows some scattered forests, but that doesn't tell me much. What about all of that empty space? Has this mapmaker actually walked that terrain? Does he know if the land is gentle or rough?"

Templeton sniffed loudly. "It's a coastal plain. The land doesn't get rough until you're west of Two River City, closer to the Tinto Mountains."

Kinnison glared at Templeton. "It's a coastal plain; there could be any number of unmarked streams and banks that your map doesn't show."

Flik shook his head. "Enough. We'll work with what we've got. Kinnison, you'll just have to find a way around any unforeseen obstacles." He pointed at a spot on the Tigermouth Road and motioned to Gengen. "How long do you think it would take to get to Kobold Village from this spot?"

Gengen barked as he thought it over. "Five hours on kobold feet, commander Flik!"

"Kinnison, do you think you could get us to near that location?"

Kinnison turned away from glaring at Templeton. "If that forest is accurate, then it should be a fair reference point. I can get you out on its southern side."

Flik nodded. "Thank you, all." He appraised the situation. "I think it's time to go. We're moving out for the east shore of the Granias River, where our transport should be waiting. Let's move!"

Flik and those following him took the south exit out of Dunan Castle, rather than try to fight their way through Viktor's men, who were crowding their way out the west gate. A small fleet of riverboats waited along the eastern shore of the Granias River, bobbing on the waves. Viktor's men had already begun to embark, and a few boats were making their way across the river.

Apple, surveying the operation from a hill overlooking the shore, pointed Flik and his men to a moderately sized galley that was anchored apart from the rest of the fleet. "That ship will be able to handle your horses, Flik. Good luck, we'll need those kobolds if we're going to pull this off."

Only a few of the horses had to be blindfolded to coax them onboard, and after that the galley set out. Stroke by stroke the ship worked its way towards the west bank of the river, even as the afternoon wore on. Yesterday's southern wind had shifted around to the northwest, bringing a cool, dry breeze that lapped waves against the boat.

The river was wide and sluggish this close to Dunan Lake, filled with murky water and dotted by islets full of tall cattails and other reeds. It took more than an hour to navigate to the opposite shore. The horses and Flik's men were quickly landed, and then the galley began to back oars.

"I've no orders to wait for you," the captain yelled. "If you get into trouble, you're on your own."

Flik smiled. "We do what we must," he yelled back. Turning to Kinnison, he said, "Find me a trail, and let's get on with this."

Kinnison led them up off the shore, into what quickly turned into a coastal marsh. There was no riding through the muck, even on the game path that Kinnison identified, so Flik and his riders had to walk on foot, leading the horses. Like the islands in the river, the land was covered with reeds, but also had short, twisting trees covered in shaggy moss. In the distance was a stand of several large willows. Flik could hear the sound of running water in all directions. Likewise, the smell of decay was prevalent. Kinnison muttered something about making a certain mapmaker walk the actual ground, but Flik pretended not to hear and let the forester get on with his work.

Luckily they had several more hours of good daylight to travel by. The land rose somewhat and the bog gave way. At one point, they passed a towering berry bush, but the fruit was still green and unripe. He shooed the men away from the potential stomachache as quickly as he could, glancing forlornly back as the bush was left behind. In a month or so, the birds would probably feast.

Kinnison and his wolf, Shiro, consistently stayed ahead, on point. The group came out of the bog into a sparse pine forest, the ground littered brown in places with fallen needles. In other spots, Flik found himself wading through a sea of green ferns, some nearly as tall as his waist.

"This was probably someone's field, a long time ago," Rossgard commented.

"How do you know?" Flik asked.

The senior sergeant chuckled. "My father was a farmer, remember? He taught me about these sorts of things. There wouldn't be this much undergrowth in an older forest; all of the trees would've blocked it out." He pushed a sapling aside. "This forest can't be that old. Maybe no older than fifty or a hundred years."

Flik looked up at the leaves overhead, the evening sun shining down through the gaps between the trees. "Gee, I would never have known," Flik answered.

As sunset neared, they came to the edge of the forests. The land sloped back down into a more marshy area, centered on a small lake. Kinnison came back from his position up front. "We've come about half the distance between the beach and the road. I don't think we should press on any further. The land ahead will be treacherous in the dark."

They got to work preparing the camp, brushing the horses down and picking the mud out of their hooves, not to mention cleaning their legs and stomachs. Flik considered cleaning his boots, but then gave up on the project. They were going to get just as muddy tomorrow. Dinner was hard biscuits, dried fruit, and preserved meat that seemed to be more fat than flesh. Warmed over the small fire, it turned out to be a passable spread for the bread. When the food was finished, Flik set the watch for the night and wrapped himself in his travel roll to try and sleep. A high pitched whining by his ears announced the arrival of uninvited guests, mosquitoes. He pulled the cover up over his head and shifted position. His last thoughts before falling into slumber were of Odessa. She had absolutely hated the pesky little insects.

Flik was up well before dawn to take the last watch of the night. Everything was still and cool. Mist hung over the marsh and lake, though it didn't quite reach up the hill and into the stand of trees where they were sleeping. The sky was cloudless, and both moons had long since set, leaving only the stars to give light. He began to grow impatient for the sun to rise. Today they had to get to Kobold Village if everything was going to work according to the plan.

Thus, when the first bit of pale pink began to creep into the eastern sky, Flik shook the various members of the party awake. Their breakfast was not much different from dinner, save that it was eaten cold. When they had finished, Kinnison led them down into the marsh.

Progress was slowed by the mist, which persisted for a couple of hours until the sun was high enough to burn it off. Thereafter they made better time, heading towards the southern side of the lake. But at midmorning a small crisis came up. Kinnison halted the group, and when Flik came forward, he found the forester staring intently at a series of tracks in muck.

"Rockadillo tracks," Kinnison said tersely. "A whole lot of them."

Flik felt his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. "Are they a danger to us?"

"Not normally. But then they wouldn't normally come down into the marshes. Still, they're past us, so we should be all right."

They continued west, rising out of the marshes again, climbing onto open fields dotted by clumps of trees. Now that the ground was better, Flik had the men pause to clean the horses and then mount. Gengen was light enough to ride behind Flik on Nightstar. They set off at a walk.

Around noon, after a few more hours of staring at the empty land, Flik wondered aloud, "Why doesn't anyone work this area? It seems fertile enough."

Surprisingly, the answer came from Gengen. "My father told me that people used to work in those fields, long, long ago." He barked to emphasize the point. "They lost their farms because it was cheaper to grow food in South Window and Harmonia."

Flik looked out at the fields again. "I don't understand."

"Doesn't take much," Rossgard jumped in. "Many farmers are only one bad season away from disaster. Heck, even a bumper crop will ruin farmers if it drives the prices down."

Flik still didn't understand, but didn't get a chance to ask any further questions. Kinnison came cantering back from his lead position, calling out an alarm. "Over there!" He pointed. "It seems we've caught up to our rockadillos."

A dozen of them were gathered five hundred yards ahead: a large bull, several smaller cows, and a number of juveniles. They had scaled shells on their backs. The legs that protruded out were hairy and ended in long, blunt claws. The bull was four feet tall but could stand on its hind legs for short periods of time. At the moment, several of the rockadillos were upright, balancing against the tree and reaching with their claws to strip off bark and leaves.

"We should go around them, give them a wide berth," Kinnison advised. "They're highly territorial, and this group looks a little agitated. I'd rather not run up against them when we can avoid them."

"Agreed," Flik answered.

They turned to the right, crossing the fields to the north of the herd. The horses did not particularly care for the smell, shifting a little and pinning back their ears. One of the rockadillos, the bull, shuffled away from the tree, rolled up into a ball, and slammed into it. Several of the younger males followed him. After repeated impacts, they cracked and eventually toppled the tree. The rest of the herd moved in to begin eating.

As the riders came upwind of the rockadillos, the bull lifted his head, sniffed, and let out an audible grunt. Several others looked in the direction of the riders and grunted too, but none of them moved from their meal. Kinnison hurried the escort on, trotting back out to point.

Beyond the rockadillos, the plains were clear again. Trees began to appear closer together, eventually forming into a sparse forest of mixed pine and deciduous growth. Flik and his men rode to the southwest, keeping out of the deeper part of the woods.

Two hours past noon they finally came across the Tigermouth Road, a rutted dirt highway running from north to south. Flik glanced up into the sky, worried that they had spent too much time going cross-country. Wordlessly, he turned Nightstar towards the south, setting off at a trot.

The afternoon weather was mild, but dry and cloudless, and Flik's horses kicked up a plume of dust as they traveled along the road. Further to the west, the land built up through a series of ridges. These were the foothills of the Tinto Mountains, purple and hazy in the distance.

An hour later they were riding by a forest on the right side of the highway. Unlike the previous forests, this was older and denser, but stopped abruptly less than ten yards from the road.

Flik pointed towards the trees. "Keep up a sharp lookout. It wouldn't do us any good to get ambushed by bandits only a few miles short of our destination."

"You don't need to worry about bad guys," Gengen replied. "Nobody with harmful intentions ever goes in there."

Flik glanced back at the kobold. "Why is that?"

Gengen barked forcefully. "It's the Forest of the Unicorn, that's why. The unicorn drives those with evil hearts out."

"You've seen this unicorn?"

Gengen shook his head. "Nope. I don't know anybody that's seen the unicorn, but I believe he exists. He's why Kobold Village has never had to worry about bandits or other bad people. Of course, we do our part to keep people out. There are always patrols around the edges, looking for anyone who might stray in."

Flik looked doubtfully at the forest. The trees were shadowy and thick enough to prevent him from seeing much of anything, unicorn or otherwise, after the first few yards. He brought his eyes back around to the south. "Well, keep up the watch anyway. Trouble could come from any direction."

But the road remained unnervingly empty. Birds flew overhead, and once a lone falcon gracefully dove into a nearby field to come up with a young rabbit clenched in its talons. Nothing else of note happened in the remaining hour that it took to get to the outskirts of Kobold Village.

Unlike human towns, the land surrounding Kobold Village was not under heavy cultivation. Gengen explained that very few kobolds grew more than small home gardens, as vegetables were only a minor part of the kobold diet. Instead, kobolds were hunters, fishers, gatherers, and herders.

Now, as they turned to the west and neared the village proper, a sudden howl shook the air. Gengen slipped off of Nightstar and answered in a series of high-pitched yips. Almost immediately, a number of kobolds appeared, approaching from out of the forest. They and Gengen barked back and forth at one another. Flik realized that they were speaking in their own language. He'd never heard it before, as the kobolds he'd fought alongside were always the small minority in a crowd of humans. It was discomforting to find the situation reversed.

One of the kobolds turned and sprinted towards Kobold Village. Gengen led the rest back to Flik and the riders. "I have explained the situation to them," he declared. "Come down and let them greet you."

Flik dismounted and one of the kobold patrollers walked towards him, extending a furry five-fingered hand. The kobold was taller than Gengen, coming up to Flik's chin, with a sleek, muscular build. His fur was gray and his ears were long and droopy. "I am Ren," the kobold said. "I welcome you and your pack to Kobold Village."


	32. Chapter 32 How Kobolds Fight

**Chapter 32 – How Kobolds Fight**

Flik's first impression of Kobold Village was how lively it was. There were kobolds everywhere, walking along the dirt streets, entering the wooden houses, or filtering in from the surrounding forests. Looking around, he realized that all of them were in groups. In the distance, six kobolds were carrying in a net full of fish. Nearby, a number of kobolds were bringing prepared dishes into a house. Over on the right, another group was examining a collection of crystal baubles that a merchant had displayed. Even the patrol that had found them had come as a group, no one had been left behind.

Flik and his men had dismounted and were leading their horses through the village. The citizens, upon seeing them, immediately swarmed around, sniffing at them and barking out greetings. Ren, who was leading them through the village, barked and snapped to try and clear the way.

Flik looked over at Gengen, trying to read the expression on his face. "How do you feel being back among your own people?"

"I don't understand," Gengen answered. "I haven't left my people."

Flik worked to keep the confusion off his face. "You must've been lonely, though, being the only kobold around." He blinked. Gengen had reacted to that statement, but the change in his face had lasted only a moment.

"I was not alone," the kobold said patiently. "It is a great shame and sadness for a kobold to lose his pack, but I have not lost my pack." He looked directly at Flik. "My pack is in the mercenaries, there I have position and duties. I have brothers to defend and brothers to defend me."

The conversation paused while Flik tried to reason out the meaning behind Gengen's words. What was Gengen to the mercenaries? Flik remembered how he'd tried to reject the kobold when he first noticed him. Even now, he saw Gengen as something of an outsider, a liability in battle because he couldn't ride a horse or draw a full-sized bow.

A wave of shame suddenly crashed down on Flik, shaking him internally. He'd encountered disdain for humans before, out of elves and dwarves. Both races tended to look down on humans as shorter lived, less educated, and generally not worth the time to interact with. Yet he had treated Gengen in exactly the same light, focusing on his shortcomings and not taking the time to learn that the kobold was, in fact, an enthusiastic and dedicated soldier. Moreover, Gengen had shown his respect of humans by taking the time to learn to speak with them. He taken the time to study human methods of battle, so that he might fit in with the mercenaries.

At that moment, Flik resolved to find a way to make Gengen an integral part of his unit. Gengen deserved as much respect as he had shown in working to conform to the mercenaries.

Meanwhile Ren had led them through the streets and to a larger house that was nearly flush against the thick forest, separated from the trees only by a wooden fence and gate. A crowd of kobolds was waiting in front of the house. They were a motley group, ranging between tall and short, sleek and bulky. Some had very long fur and others had short, fine fur. There were those who had upright ears, like Gengen, and others whose ears drooped.

A short, bent kobold with white fur emerged from the group. Since he was using a cane to aid his walking, Flik judged that he must be elderly or injured. The kobold shuffled to a stop just short of Flik and looked up into his face. "I am called Cham and am the elder of Kobold Village. You say that Two River City is threatened by the Highland Army? That General Ridley needs our help?"

"Yes," Flik answered.

Cham responded with a series of snarls and barks, rising up into a long trailing howl that was taken up by all the kobolds within earshot. Flik winced because of the pain in his ears. When the noise subsided, the elder said, "No kobold ever forgets his pack brothers, no kobold ever fails to defend his brothers. It would be the greatest shame if we did. We hear your call, oh brother, and we shall drive your enemy back by tooth and claw if we must." He snarled again and it was taken up by the kobolds immediately around him. Then, without any further conversation, those kobolds took off in several different directions. The elder proceeded to walk past Flik in the general direction of the south exit to the village.

Flik handed Nightstar's reins over to Rossgard and hurried along after the elder. A small train of kobolds was gathering to Cham's rear, but no one impeded Flik as he made his way to the elder's side. "If I may, sir, we need to get to planning the attack as quickly as possible." He looked up into the sky and noted, with alarm, that the sun was already half hidden by the western trees. "We need to be there as early as possible tomorrow."

The elder looked up at Flik. "You needn't worry. Everything has been set in motion, including me. I intend to be outside the walls of Two River City by tomorrow morning. Is that not soon enough for you?" The elder chortled, still continuing to walk. "Or perhaps you doubt that my legs can carry me that far?"

"It's not that. It's just that…well, I'd think you'd want to meet with your commanders, try to work out some general strategy, or at least a marching order."

The elder laughed some more. "I find you humans to be refreshingly odd. First you tell me that I must make all haste, and then you tell me to waste time figuring out how to make the best looking line while walking there?" He gestured at the kobolds around them. "Just you watch, young human. We are all one pack. Every one of us knows our place, and every one of us knows what to do when we get there."

Flik looked around at the kobolds. More were joining the growing group with every passing minute, armed with short swords and light armor. Not only that, but the formation seemed to have some organization that he could not fathom. Each kobold did seem to have a place that they instinctively knew.

The kobold army already had more than a hundred members as they marched out of Kobold Village, and more kobolds were filtering in from every direction. After a while, Flik realized that they intended to keep marching right through the night so that they might arrive on the battlefield in time.

Flik bowed to the elder and said, "Let my men help your pack as well. We can range out in front of you and serve as scouts."

Cham smiled toothily. "Let it be so."

Flik walked back to where the rest of his men, having followed the kobolds out of the village, were riding along. Mounting Nightstar, he said, "We're going to ride on ahead of the kobolds and see what Highland is doing." He glanced around and spotted Gengen, walking between Flik's men and the rest of the kobolds. "Gengen!" Flik shouted. "Mount up behind me, we're going to do some scouting."

Did Gengen betray a moment of surprise before he climbed up behind Flik? He was not sure. Regardless, they trotted out in front of the kobold formation and then kept at a quick walk for some time after that.

The sun was now setting behind the distant western mountains. Flik slowed the pace to a normal walk. The dirt road seemed empty enough, but he could not be sure. The land ahead was gently rolling plains, bordered by sparse forest to the east and more difficult terrain to the west. At the crest of a low hill, he paused and tried to spot Two River City in the distance. It was no good, the angle and evening haze prevented him from seeing that far away.

Night fell. The Scarlet Moon stood high overhead, nearly half-full and waning. The Blue Moon was not up. It was a pleasant, mild night, with the wind from the west driving down the humidity.

"Quietly," Flik cautioned. "We don't want to run into any pickets and fall into an ambush."

"I can see," Gengen declared. "Kobolds have night vision, so if we ride up front, I should be able to tell you if anybody's waiting. Anybody in the open, at least."

"That's good." Flik walked Nightstar into the lead position, and the unit continued on.

The next few hours were tense. Every time they came to a rise, Flik diverted the unit off the main road and out into the fields, just in case there were Highland scouts on the reverse side. There weren't any, but he felt that caution was prudent. All around them, night insects buzzed, and he could hear the distinct bass of bullfrogs. Later in the night, the sky began to cloud up, thin trailing clouds gradually growing thicker. The Scarlet Moon disappeared behind them, leaving the night even darker.

Along towards early morning, with the men almost at Two River City, the forests to the east began to get denser. Flik worried over them, fearing that they might hide an ambush. Concentrating on the trees, he nearly fell off Nightstar when Gengen whispered, "Ahead! There's a barricade." He pointed out into the blackness, somewhere down the road.

Flik scanned in that direction. "I can't see it. How far are we from it?"

"Third of a mile, it's at the top of the next ridge."

Flik squinted, unable to make it out. "Anybody there?"

Gengen paused for a long time, apparently studying the surroundings. "There!" he exclaimed. "There's some movement in the trees to the left, and I think I can see a few more to the right."

Flik led his men back a ways and sent a messenger off to the kobolds. Then came the waiting. He had his men stand down in shifts, permitting them to walk around and stretch out a little bit. For his part, he went through the pre-battle routine. Feeling over his armor as best he could without light. His wooden shield was still punctured and partially splintered from the arrow that hit it during the battle to defend Dunan Castle. He frowned over that, feeling the top wobble a little. He tossed it aside out into the field. It would be better to go into battle without a shield, rather than trusting in equipment that was likely to fail when he needed it most.

There was pink in the east, heralding the rising sun. Flik had the men remount and ride down into one of the low areas, screened from the barricade by another ridge. Dawn brought ominous tidings, the sound of battle to the north. Needing to know what was happening, Flik took a risk and had Gengen dismount, sending him up the hill to see what he could. The kobold was only at the crest for a moment before he came scampering back down.

"The Highland Army is right up against the city walls! They're fighting around the main gates."

Flik swallowed and looked back to the south. "Where are our allies?"

Gengen hurried up the slope to the south, pointed, and shouted, "They're coming, they're almost here."

Within a quarter hour, the first scouts of the kobold army came over the hill and down into the depression. Flik followed them to the top of the hill to the north. In the daylight, the Highland barricade looked even more impressive, an earthen and log breastwork stretched across the road and to the forests on either side, wooden spikes protruding out in front to ward a direct assault. Behind the works were Highland archers, possibly a couple hundred men, clearly alerted to the presence of the kobolds.

The kobold scouts studied the fortifications for several minutes and then hurried a message back to the main body. Their army certainly had swelled during the night, possibly to almost a thousand men. Flik looked back to the roadblock. Still, those Highlanders would be able to hold the kobolds off for a while. Would it be long enough for their main force to take Two River City? If the city fell, the kobolds didn't look like they'd be able to retake it, no matter how enthusiastic they were.

Flik rode back to find Cham, the kobold elder. He was in the center of the kobold formation, marching nonchalantly towards the Highland positions. When Flik dismounted, the elder looked up at him and said, "Thank you very much for your timely report. It was very instrumental in forming our plan."

Flik nodded. "That's good. I hope that there won't be too much time lost pushing those Highlanders back. I'm not sure how much longer Two River City can hold out."

The elder chuckled. "Not to worry, you shall see how kobolds fight." He barked and snarled out some orders, and the units of the army quickly arrayed themselves into a long line of several squares with skirmishers out in front. Cham looked towards the Highland positions and let out a deep howl. The kobolds to either side joined him, their numbers gradually growing to include the whole army. This aural assault lasted for more than a minute, ending only as the foremost kobolds broke into a sprint towards their enemy. Seconds later, the entire army was surging forward, barking and yipping.

Flik pulled his fingers out of his ears. The display was impressive, but would it really break the morale of the defenders? He watched the kobold charge develop. As improbable as it seemed, they appeared to be trying to drive the charge home, right at the spikes of the barricade. He shook his head. There were going to be a lot of casualties in the next few minutes, but if the kobolds gained the entrenchment in one move, it would certainly reduce the time needed to get to Two River.

The Highland archers readied themselves behind their breastwork, aiming at the onrushing kobolds. Flik, still behind the kobold lines, squinted through the dust to try and make out what was happening. The kobold snarls and barks changed to yips and whimpers of dismay. Part of their center appeared to break, individuals turning and running. The two flanks of the formation carried on, drawing close to the fortifications.

For a moment, Flik thought the kobolds would get there in enough numbers to carry the works, but apparently they did not. After a few minutes of inconclusive combat, the two flanks also began to fall back. As they did so, the kobold center, suddenly regaining organization, attacked again.

Flik chewed his lower lip. What was going on here? He rode towards the fighting, Rossgard and the others following him, to try and get a better view. He found Cham one ridge forward, observing the battle with an unconcerned expression.

Flik could not feel so sanguine about the situation, especially when the renewed attack faltered. "We need to get through them," he said, gritting his teeth to maintain his calm.

"Patience, young human. We are nearly there. Just watch and you will see." The kobold army had reformed, and Cham strolled to the front letting out his howl again. The kobolds added their voices to his, their enthusiasm sounding undiminished.

But the Highland side looked unruffled, too. Their commanders were bringing up more men to the line, so that it practically bristled with arrows. The kobolds' yell ended abruptly and, for a few seconds that felt much like an eternity, nothing happened.

The barest inkling of doubt crossed Flik's mind, and then the Highlanders were suddenly enveloped in confusion and fighting. There were more kobolds attacking from behind the enemy lines. The kobolds around Cham, now that their opponents were in disarray, rushed towards the barricade.

Cham remained where he was, too old to take part in the actual combat. When Flik approached him, the elder began speaking softly. "Let me tell you something of the differences between kobolds and humans. When a human learns to fight, he learns first how to fight alone. One against one, so that any man might equal any other. But few kobolds are strong enough to fight in that way. We always begin by learning how to fight in pairs. One feints to draw the enemy, pretending to attack with all his might, and then the other rushes in for the killing blow. Our armies fight in much the same manner. Enough, now we must go forward and see to rescuing the city."

Flik went up to where the kobolds were hurriedly pulling down the barricade. A group of disarmed Highland prisoners was also helping, under the watchful eye of kobold guards. Past the impediment, Flik cantered out in front of the kobolds to look down at the battle raging around Two River City, three miles distant.

The fight had grown in intensity, with both sides apparently bringing in more soldiers. The main action was still around the gates, where a group of defenders valiantly stood in a half-circle and tried to hold the Highland army out. Flik could see that the action was much too hotly contested for the Two River side to break it off and retreat. The Highlanders were likely to gain the gates before all the defenders could make it safely inside.

Another fight was occurring down the walls, where the Highland army had brought up ladders. Here, the defenders were Winghordes, one of the three races that inhabited the city. These warriors looked like slender humans, save that they had fully functional wings on their backs and talons for feet. They were using those wings to great effect now, staying out of sword range and dropping rocks to clear the ladders.

Then another group of kobolds joined the battle, rushing out from the main gates of Two River City to join the beleaguered defenders. The kobolds from Kobold Village were now forming up on the ridge overlooking the fight, preparing to go down and enter the battle. Flik looked out to the east, searching for Viktor's forces. A cloud of dust in that direction suggested that they were approaching.

A premonition caused Flik to swing his eyes back around to the city. A giant dome of white had just enveloped the defending troops, a sure sign of the Bright Shield Rune and that Riou was in the midst of the fighting.

Cham walked up next to Flik. "Now we do what we've come to do," he declared and barked orders to the kobolds around him. The kobolds swarmed down the hill, forming up into several smaller units as they did so. However, the Highland army suddenly wasn't in the mood for fighting. Almost seamlessly, they switched from pressing the attack to withdrawing in good order. A wedge of blue and white cavalry came up to skirmish with the kobolds and slow up the pursuit.

This seemed to catch the leading kobolds off guard, and the unit quickly got caught up in a melee. Flik urged Nightstar forward, calling for his men to come to the kobolds' aid. Watching the approaching fight, he realized that his actions were fairly foolish, but he just never felt right standing back in safety when his allies were in trouble. At the last moment, he remembered that Gengen was still mounted behind him, and really should've been let down. Then there was no time for anything except survival.

He parried aside a Highland sword and slipped his under the enemy arm, jamming it up into the weak point in the armpit. Nightstar carried him past that opponent, but more approached. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a kobold roll under a horse and hamstring it. Then Flik had to parry another attack, countering with a thrust that just missed. With his arm outstretched, he called on the lightning rune and blasted the unprepared Highlander out of the saddle.

There was the sharp clash of metal on metal directly behind Flik, and he turned in time to see Gengen's sword holding off that of an enemy. Flik unleashed the lightning rune on this new opponent, who brought up his shield in time to take most of the energy off of that. Still, he did not come back for another try at Flik.

"Thank you," Flik said to Gengen.

"It's just my job."

The Highland cavalry was starting to fall back. They had not stood for long against the superior numbers of the kobolds, but the time they gained was enough. After a few more minutes of grudgingly giving ground, they turned and followed the main body in retreating north towards the Lana River. Flik trained his eyes to the east, trying to estimate if Viktor's units had any chance of catching up. They did not. The Highland general had timed his retreat perfectly and would get away without any further significant losses.

Now that the battle was over, he remained on Nightstar, breathing heavily and sweating. This day had become hot and humid. Looking back on Viktor's men, Flik saw that they had mostly halted, save for a small group that was riding towards Two River City. He and his men trotted in the direction of the delegation.

Naturally enough, Viktor was among them, riding a brown and white northern draft horse. More surprising was that Shu was also there, on a dun. The strategist acknowledged Flik with a nod and said. "You have completed your mission in a most exemplary manner."

Viktor smiled. "We came as quickly as we could. Fitcher even sent a letter screaming for help. Bet you he didn't realize we were so close."

A messenger came galloping in from the gates of the city, one of Viktor's men. Pulling up, he shouted breathlessly, "They say Lord Riou fainted at the end of the fighting." Flik felt his chest constrict, forcing the air out of his lungs. However, the messenger continued, "He was taken to the New Leaf Inn, and they think he will recover. Lords Makai and Ridley await our delegation in the Assembly Hall."

"Very good," Shu answered calmly. "Viktor, assign some men to find the New Leaf Inn and keep Lord Riou under surveillance. They are to report immediately if his condition worsens." He looked thoughtfully into the distance. "I shall have to study this Bright Shield Rune more closely, if I am able. Look there, in the distance, at that perfect arc of dead grass."

Flik did, picking out the wide area of brown grass after a moment. His memory slipped back to the dead orchard after the battle of Waldron Village and the words of Genkaku that he'd read in Muse City. The Bright Shield Rune had done this, taken life from the earth, broken it into pieces, and given it to wounded men. He could not begin to comprehend the forces at work to do that.

Shu spoke, catching Flik's attention. "I want you to return to Dunan Castle as quickly as you can. I will be needed here for negotiations, at least for a while, and I don't want to have all of our best generals away from our headquarters. Be vigilant for any Highland moves. If they attack, work with Apple to hold them off and send a messenger to get me with all speed. Hopefully, everything will go smoothly and we'll be able to follow you without delay. Understand?"

Flik took a moment to look at the kobolds from Kobold Village greeting the kobolds from Two River City. It was an impressive show of barking and hugging and jumping up and down in the air. He turned back to Shu. "Yes, sir."


	33. Chapter 33 Recreated as a New Person

**Chapter 33 – Recreated as a New Person**

_In Solis 460, Gatesdei, the 4th of Unya:_

_Dear Diary,_

_It's nice to be able to relax, even if it's for just a little. Tai Ho has confirmed that the north bank of the Lana is clear, meaning that the Highland Third Army's retreat is real. That makes two victories in a row against them. We may not be any closer to driving Highland from Jowston, but at least the mood is better. Moreover, Riou and Shu returned last night with the news that Two River City will support us with their troops. Supposedly, the great General Ridley will be leading his Kobold Corps personally._

_And in better news, I finally have a room of my own. The finishing touches were put on last night, so that was my last night sleeping in the tavern. There's not a lot of furniture, just a bed and a table. I'll need to talk to someone about making a bookcase for my diaries. Then I'll think about what other books I want; everything but my journals went up with the fort in East Muse._

There was a not very polite pounding on the door to his room, and Flik ripped an uneven tear across the page he was working on.

"Yo!" Viktor shouted, voice muffled by the door. "Strategist's called a debriefing for right about now. You don't want to make him angry, do you?"

Flik closed up his book. "I suppose I don't." He threw on his blue cape and joined Viktor out in the corridor. Their rooms were adjacent to each other, on the second floor of the west wing of the castle. Even though the work of fixing up the walls and floor was done, the area was still crowded with workers lugging in pieces of furniture. Furthermore, work was going on one floor down, expanding that part the castle into the New State Army's barracks. Flik judged that it was going to be difficult to get uninterrupted sleep for a while.

The hallway leading to the great hall was also crowded with workmen. Viktor and Flik had to duck and weave to make their way forward. A group of children were doing likewise, running down the passage towards the two warriors. The last child in the group stuck out a hand, slapped Viktor on the thigh, and shouted, "Tag! You're it!" He quickly disappeared after his fellows.

Viktor contemplated his thigh for a moment, straightened out, and whacked Flik on the shoulder. "Tag! No tag-backs!" He turned and jogged for the far exit.

Flik grimaced and rubbed his shoulder, puzzling over his next move. Finally, he tapped the workman next to him on the arm and declared, "You're it!" The man, who was carrying a desk with both arms, looked quizzically at Flik, trying to gauge what was going on. The other workers, picking up on the game, started clearing the hall. Flik also departed, turned right, and walked past the Journeyman Crystal into the great hall.

He was the last to arrive, though not a lot of people had been called for this meeting. Shu and Apple stood at the foot of the dais, while Riou, Nanami, Eilie, and Pilika were gathered off to the side. Viktor was lounging on the steps of the dais, catching his breath, and observing the children.

Flik caught Riou's attention and said, "Good work in Two River City. I'm glad to see you looking better."

Nanami's smile wavered for just a moment, but she sounded confident when she replied, "Of course, nothing's going to happen to my brother while I'm around."

Eilie's concern was more apparent. "Yes, as long as Riou is okay, everything is fine."

Pilika almost jumped into an embrace with Riou, drawing chuckles from Viktor. "Look at that, Flik. Everybody's worried about Riou. Even I was worried." Riou began to blush and tried to struggle out of Pilika's hold, making Viktor laugh even more. "Don't be so uptight, it's great being popular. You'll understand when you're older."

Shu smiled patiently, clearing his throat to get everybody to look at him. "Allow me to offer congratulations as well. Your efforts to bring the citizens of Two River together to fight were what made it possible for the city to hold out long enough for our aid to arrive. This whole operation has been a resounding success, which we must build off of. The Highland Army has now played out all of their offensive moves and will need to re-supply before they take any further initiatives. Therefore, we now have a moment of breathing space."

He paused and put his hands behind his back. "Unfortunately, we are nowhere near strong enough to take the offensive ourselves. Instead, I believe Riou should tour Two River province, just as he did in South Window, looking for people who want to join the army. For the moment we should focus only on Lakewest and Kobold Village. The people coming from Two River City will be organized by General Ridley."

Riou seemed to think for a moment. "It would be nice to see more places. Everything in Two River was such a rush."

"Five or six days should suffice," Shu added. "I don't believe you should go as far as Tigermouth just yet."

Nanami jumped to her brother's side. "I'm going, of course. I want to see more of the kobolds. They're just so cute!"

Eilie shook her head. "I need to catch up with my sister and brother. Riou will be safe if it's just for a couple of days."

"Take Viktor and Flik, too," Shu suggested. "You might also bring Gengen to help with the kobolds."

"Wait!" Flik interrupted. "You want us to go with Riou? Didn't you lecture us on how we should be available in case of a crisis?"

With only the faintest hint of a smirk, Shu answered, "I do not foresee any crisis occurring in the next few days. Think of this as me ordering you two to go out on a little adventure. I've learned that you seem to need them every now and then. If you still feel upset, then take the time to study the land. I've already heard Kinnison's reports about how inaccurate the maps were." He looked around the room. "Well, if there aren't any further concerns, I believe we are done here."

However, Flik could hear him speaking a few more words to Apple as the two strategists walked from the room. "I need you to coordinate with Leona and Barbara as to feeding and sheltering the people from Two River City. I've still got to work out the final details with Hans about getting weapons and armor from his dealers in Zexen and Tinto."

Riou beckoned Viktor and Flik over. "Let's figure out what we'll need for the next few days. After that, we'll find Amada and get him to take us over to Lakewest."

Flik tried to keep from sighing. There went any relaxing he was hoping to do.

Later that afternoon they were back on Lake Dunan, slowly sailing northwest in Amada's ship into a headwind, in the direction of Lakewest. There really hadn't been too much that needed to be planned for this trip. One of Viktor's squads would provide general security, and Gengen had agreed to come without a single complaint. Flik breathed in the salty air, working the tension out of his body. He tried to shake all the nagging concerns out of his system, telling himself that this was going to be an uneventful assignment.

He closed his eyes, listening to the sounds around him. Gengen was regaling the deckhands with stories of his swimming ability, including one time where he'd held his breath underwater for nearly fifteen minutes. There was something in the tone of his voice that suggested to Flik that it wasn't an exaggeration. Nanami squealed in delight and ran across the deck, shouting about flying fish. Viktor began to tell a story about how a whole boatload of flying fish had ended up on the deck of a ship he'd been sailing on near Kanakan, but was interrupted by the lookout shouting down from his perch.

"Wingers, approaching from dead ahead! Look to the sky!"

Flik snapped his eyes back open, getting up onto his feet. Everyone had gone quiet, looking up into the cloudy sky. He spotted them after a moment. About one hundred feet off the water was a flock of several hundred, flying in their general direction. It was more of them than he'd ever seen in one gathering, having only run into a bare handful in his travels.

One of the crewmembers scowled and commented, "I hope they aren't going to Dunan Castle. Wingers are nothing but trouble, thieves and cheats all of them, and by all the True Runes, they stink like nothing you ever smelled before."

"Stop that!" Riou shouted with surprising vehemence, his voice stopping the man's tirade like a physical blow. "Those Winghordes are our new allies. They saved us at Two River City, and now they've come to fight for the State. We will welcome them as they deserve."

The deckhand, who was taller than Riou by a full head and certainly outweighed him two to one, backed away, cowed. Nanami stared at her brother with a slightly worried expression on her face, as if seeing something in him that she hadn't before. Viktor was smiling, almost on the verge of laughing, but he nodded his head respectfully when Riou looked his way. Flik regarded Riou, noticing a change in his demeanor. The meek, self-effacing exterior was slowly cracking away. Little by little, Riou was being recreated as a new person.

Flik wondered if Riou was even conscious of the change.

"Riou! Hey, Riou!" One of the Winghordes was circling around the boat, descending lower and lower. The first thing Flik was aware of was the smell, just like the deckhand had said. The Winghorde stank of rotten fish. Taking a few steps away from the railing, Flik saw that the winger was a slender boy, wearing a sleeveless white undershirt and tan shorts. His brown hair was a thorough mess, possibly from the wind.

Riou grinned happily, his face suddenly boyish again. He seemed to show no discomfort from the smell. "Chaco!" he called. "You came!"

Chaco's talons gripped the railing of the ship easily, and he settled there, pulling his black, bat-wings against his back. Those wings were smeared with some sort of oil mixture, which gave off the stench. "Naturally. I saw how you pulled everybody together to stop the Highlanders. There's no way I'm going to miss the chance to help you. Besides, I've still got to make up for all the trouble I caused."

Riou and Nanami walked over to the railing, while Flik remained several paces away, watching. "That's right," Nanami said testily. "It took you long enough to see that we were trying to help you. I bet you enjoyed making life difficult for us!"

Chaco edged down the railing away from Nanami, much as a bird would. "It's not my fault that I didn't trust you! All you humans ever did was treat us like dirt."

Riou laughed good-naturedly. "Sis, I'm not mad at him, so you shouldn't be either." Then he looked seriously up at Chaco. "What happened in the past should remain in the past. That's the only way the power of those hurtful things can be destroyed. I promise that I'll help build a different relationship for the future."

"Grandma said we had to do our part, too," Chaco replied. "So we're going to help you out."

"Chaco," a new voice broke in, deep and rasping. "Where's my toy gotten off to this time?"

Chaco yelped, went airborne momentarily, and landed a bit further down the railing. Another winger came down right on the spot Chaco had previously occupied. He was very different looking than Chaco, older, taller, and heavier, though still thinner than Flik. He was wearing ripped black pants and a purple shirt. His brown hair hung straight down, all around his head, except where he'd pushed it to one side of his nose, revealing one eye and an unsettling grin.

"I didn't say you could go off on your own," the newcomer admonished in a mocking tone.

Chaco seemed very disturbed by the new winger. "I-I don't need your permission. You should've stayed in the sewers, Sid."

"Chaco," Sid responded, drawing the name out. "Don't you remember? You do need my permission." He edged along the railing closer to Chaco. Chaco hopped nervously away. "The sewers were getting boring," Sid continued. "Who are your new friends? Introduce us," he ordered, looking from person to person.

Nanami shrieked when his gaze turned to her, and ducked behind her brother. This drew a cruel chuckle from Sid. Flik advanced, his hands moving towards his sword, but stopped when the winger shifted to look at him. There was something about this winger's presence that caused Flik to pause. Chaco took the opportunity to flap into the air and land on the ship's cabin.

Sid studied Flik, bobbing and cocking his head like a pigeon. Apparently satisfied, he smirked and said, "Seems like there's going to be excitement at this Dunan Castle. I like that, it sounds fun. And Chaco will be there too, in case I ever get bored." He grinned at the younger winger.

Chaco was immediately in the air again, flapping to gain altitude. "I'll tell Grandma about you!" he shouted. "Wait and see, she'll fix you good."

Sid started up after him. "Chaco, you want to sit around with the elders all day? You'll bore yourself to death."

"Better than what you'll do to me," Chaco shouted back, rapidly climbing up towards the others.

"Chaco, you'll never get a girl if you don't come out. You'll die all alone, with nobody except me to be there for you." He started giggling maliciously. Chaco's answering wail was clearly audible.

When the two of them had rejoined the other wingers, Viktor quietly commented, "Don't want to let that freak near the kids."

"Don't want to let that freak near anybody," Flik responded.

Nanami pulled herself up from behind Riou. "I wasn't afraid," she exclaimed. "I was just being…prudent."

Flik looked back up at the Winghordes. He'd felt a moment's hesitation, but he certainly wasn't going to tell anyone about that, ever. He didn't want to give Sid any reason to notice him again.

The sun was low in the west as the ship approached the wooden piers of Lakewest. The reflection off the water made Flik squint as he tried to take in the town for the first time. It was smaller than he'd figured, given that it was the only good harbor in Two River province. There were a few small storehouses along the northern part of the beach, but nothing rivaling the works in either Coronet or Kuskus. Obviously, large ships were wary of the treacherous shoals and shallow water depth along the western part of the lake.

Amada's crew sailed the ship to one of the piers with practiced ease. Even though the port wasn't big, there was plenty of produce waiting to be transported. Barrels and baskets were stacked along the wooden quays. Dock workers were loading them onto waiting ships.

As soon as the ship was secure, Viktor and a couple of his men jumped off to check the pier. Riou and Nanami stepped off more sedately, followed by Gengen. Flik came next, looking around, trying to get a feel for the place. The remainder of Viktor's men began lugging supplies off.

With the shadows creeping up, Flik expected little fanfare upon their arrival, but one of the workers on the next pier over looked up and shouted, "Hey! That's the boy with Genkaku's rune. It's Riou."

In an instant all of the loading and unloading had come to a halt. Workers, dock bosses, sailors, and ship officers alike came running in to gather around Riou, babbling excitedly as they did.

"He was there at Two River City, personally led a charge right at the Highlanders."

"They say the rune on his right hand can bring back the dead."

"Lord Riou, Lord Riou, why are you here?"

Riou had taken the moment to climb up onto one of the barrels, and faced the crowd calmly. After a moment, he spoke in a strong voice. "The Highland Army has been driven from Two River, but the threat remains. We must take back those lands that have fallen to them. We must rebuild our nation from its ruins, strong and whole. Any of you who have strength to offer, I beg of you, join us at Dunan Castle."

The crowd responded by cheering and clapping, giving way when Riou jumped down from his perch and started walking towards the town. They swarmed all around their hero, thwarting even the best efforts by Viktor and his men to set up a cordon. Flik began to warily search the excited faces, trying to keep an eye on any potential threats.

A wealthy merchant offered Riou the use of his home to stay the night, but Riou politely declined the offer, saying he would sleep at the inn. As the throng crossed out of the docks and onto the narrow, muddy streets, more people spilled out of the houses along the way. Nanami grabbed Riou's arm by the elbow in order to stay by her brother's side. Flik fought his way forward, trying not to lose sight of Riou in the press.

The innkeeper was first appalled and then delighted to see the crowd approaching his establishment. Ushering Riou inside, he tried to get him to take the best table in the house, ordering the bouncers to clear out the party already there. Again, Riou refused the honor, taking a seat in the common room. In the end, this seemed to suit the innkeeper, and his barmaids spent the evening passing out drinks to everyone who came to look upon the hero.

Now that Riou wasn't walking anywhere, Viktor and Flik had an easier time controlling the crowd. All through the evening people approached in groups to offer service. Flik figured that most of the people in Lakewest must've turned out for this. His rough estimate was somewhere up in the two thousands. At one point Nanami tried to hand her brother a plate of food, but he ignored it, continuing to greet and say a few words with the people before him.

Eventually, many hours later, the line of visitors subsided and the inn began to grow less crowded. Nanami pointed meaningfully to the food that was now cold. Riou nodded and picked up his fork to eat. Before he could, one more person sauntered forward.

He was about as far from a dignitary as it was possible to be, dressed in a white undershirt and baggy purple pants. His blond hair was slicked up in the front, and his whole face was long and sharp. He had a long cigarette pipe in his mouth. His eyes darted to take in Viktor, Flik, and the others around Riou in one quick motion, appraising them all.

Viktor stood up, putting out a hand to bar the way. "I think Riou's pretty tired. Why don't you come back in the morning?"

"Let him through," Riou commanded softly. "He's waited all this time to speak with me."

The man sat down cross legged and looked at Riou without speaking. Flik took the moment to study him. He appeared to be an ordinary drifter, but his muscle tone was more developed than the average lay-about. Was that pipe hollow, like a blow gun? Flik was just about to shout a warning when the stranger took the pipe out of his mouth and said, "You look pretty damn scrawny to be a hero. How'd you ever manage to beat anyone?"

"Watch what you say around Lord Riou!" Viktor threatened.

Riou continued to smile, his manner modest. "Maybe I have luck on my side, that's all."

The stranger barked out a laugh. "Luck, you say? It's good that you acknowledge that she exists. Most damn fools go around thinking that they can control things by their own power. They don't see that she's been at their side all along, calling all the shots. That's why they never see the fall that she's setting them up for, fickle lady that she is. So, does she favor you still?"

Riou shrugged. "I haven't lost yet."

Smiling, the stranger said, "Maybe you'd like to test that luck? Do you know chinchirorin?" He pulled out a mat, a small bowl, and three dice. "It's the perfect game of chance. There's no reading your opponent's face and no moving pieces around a game board. It's just you and the dice. What do you say, boy, up to the challenge?"

Flik glanced at the game cursorily. Something else was tugging at his attention, a sound he was hearing. He stood up, drawing a sharp glance from the stranger, and started to wander aimlessly across the common room, trying to attune his ears to the sound. No, not a sound…a voice. He was hearing a voice that he recognized.

"What's up?" Viktor said, breaking Flik's concentration. "Is there some kind of threat?"

Flik shook his head, mostly to try and pick up the voice again. "Nothing's wrong. I just think I hear someone I know."

"You think?" They glanced around the room, which was crowded enough to make picking out people along the far wall difficult.

From behind, Nanami burst out in a victory whoop. Flik could hear the stranger's chuckle. "Looks like the lady is still with you, kid. I think I'll be joining your cause. The name's Shilo. I do a little bit of everything, and I've learned to read luck like you would read a book. Besides, there'll be enough saps at your place that I ought to make a killing."

Flik moved away, slowly working his way across the room. He picked up the voice again, a young man's voice, slightly unsure of himself. "I'm not certain this test is even for real. Don't you think we should consider returning home? It's been almost two years, your father's probably worried about you."

That elicited a fiery response, from a young woman. "Go home? What kind of man are you? If you want them to acknowledge you as a true warrior, then you'll have to go through with the test." Flik's steps became faster, more sure. He recognized the girl's voice too, and the subject matter piqued his interest. He stepped around an overturned chair, hearing the young man's response.

"Tengaar, we need to think this through. A true warrior doesn't go running off after danger blindly."

That was all the confirmation that Flik needed, even if he couldn't quite see the two youths because a gaggle of merchants from Tinto blocked the way. He looked right and left for a way around, then Viktor simply waded into them, scattering them like geese.

Tengaar's answer was clearly audible. "Stop worrying so much. You're a warrior trained in Warrior's Village. You mustn't let fear command you."

Someone slipped, and merchants and Viktor alike ended up spilling into a pile on the floor, finally giving Flik a clear view of the two from Warrior's Village. They were seated at a table by a window, so that all he could see was Tengaar's back and the top of Hix's head. Tengaar's long, red hair was set in a long braid that trailed down her back and past her hips. Hix's hair was slate gray.

He answered Tengaar by saying, "I'm not afraid for me, but for you."

Flik jumped over the pile of men on the floor and started walking towards the two of them, thinking of some appropriate way to greet them.

"But I have you to protect me," Tengaar answered. "As long as you're there, what do I have to fear?"

Flik could almost feel Hix blushing. "I-yeah, but…well,"

He was almost at the table when Tengaar suddenly slammed her chair towards him. He grunted as it impacted on his legs and stomach. "That'll teach you to sneak up on a lady," she shouted, followed by, "Take this, pervert!" She pivoted on one foot, swinging around to face him. Flik had only a moment to see the light flashing off of two long knives in her hands, one aimed for his neck, and the other driving towards his thigh.

The next few seconds were going to be messy, Flik feared.


	34. Chapter 34 Warrior's Village Kids

**Chapter 34 – Warrior's Village Kids**

Flik dodged, unconscious mind and trained muscles working of their own volition even while his will was processing the enormity of those knife blades. His knees bent, legs flexing, hips shifting, one foot pivoting slightly, and the rest of his body went along for the ride. They were subtle motions, but enough. He registered one blade chafing across the leather over his thigh, the other a glint that disappeared under his chin and reappeared beyond him, having caught nothing in between.

He felt a moment's relief, then began to turn his head to look at something out of the corner of his eye. It was the side of Tengaar's face, rapidly growing larger in his vision. Calmly, detachedly, Flik's reasoning will waited for his mind and muscles to reflexively do something. They did, returning control of his body back over to his consciousness, as if to say, "You get us out of this mess!" His reason shouted back, "I'm not the one who decided to lunge right at her!"

They collided, her shoulder and elbow crunching into his chest, his arms flying out to either side of her, tangling with her hair, raking across her chin. The crowd of the inn suddenly roared in his ears, but he could also distinctly hear Tengaar's outraged gasp, Viktor's footsteps, and Hix saying "Huh?" Flik thought he smelled some sort of flower scent from her red hair, as if she'd washed it earlier.

He rocked back a little, but maintained his balance. Tengaar stumbled back a step, but caught herself before falling. Still between his arms, she whirled back to face him, but her outrage abruptly turned to recognition.

"Flik, is that you?" she asked, astonished. Without waiting for an answer, she leapt forward to embrace him, confirming his reality by wrapping her arms around him.

Flik struggled to breathe, spots swimming in his eyes. He certainly didn't have the presence to complete his end of the hug, his arms remaining outstretched by the impact.

Viktor casually strolled up to join the reunion, smiling mirthfully. "Long time no see, you two."

He might've said more, but Tengaar disengaged herself from Flik and jumped over to hug Viktor, saying, "Mister Viktor, you too? You're both alive?" She took a step away from Viktor to appraise both of them. "What happened?" She frowned. "Nobody knew anything about your whereabouts after the fall of Gregminster."

Viktor rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, we've been hearing that a lot lately."

Flik took the moment to get a good look at Tengaar. At first glance, nothing much had changed since he'd seen her last. Tomboyish and athletic, she was still wearing the same short-sleeved, long tan dress that she usually wore. It even had the same slit on the left side. On the other hand, she had gained a couple of inches of height, and she was filling that dress out in places she hadn't two years ago. Come to think of it, had she moved that slit further up her leg?

Hix spoke, greeting them cheerfully. "Mister Flik, Mister Viktor, I'm so glad you're all right." Hix had also grown in the two years; the beanpole youth now had the height to look Flik right in the eye. He didn't have Flik's build, though, his yellow shirt and aquamarine vest hung loosely on his frame. Come to think of it, his belted white pants were narrower at the waist than Flik's black pants. He'd also substituted a blue bandanna, of the same color as his vest, for the green one he'd worn when he was younger.

Flik shrugged. "Well, it's not my fault. I was too injured to go out. By the time I recovered, Viktor wanted me to come to Jowston with him."

Viktor rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry! It's not like you ever said you wanted to return to Warrior's Village. You could've written them a letter if you were so concerned."

Riou appeared, walking between Viktor and Flik, eyes carefully reading the situation. "Is everything okay?" Gengen was at his side, sheathing his sword now that it appeared the trouble was past. Nanami was hanging back, maybe a little intimidated by Tengaar.

"Just a bit of a misunderstanding," Flik explained. "This," he gestured towards Riou, "is Lord Riou, leader of the New State Army. Viktor and I are fighting for him, kind of like the old days with Tir McDohl. Riou, this is Tengaar and Hix. They're Warrior's Village kids who helped us during the Liberation War."

Hix stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Lord Riou." Riou nodded and shook Hix's hand in answer.

Forgotten amid the confusion of the greeting, Flik remembered the conversation that had drawn him over to the table. "Hix, you've begun your ritual journey of manhood?"

Hix abruptly let go of Riou's hand. "I…yes."

Tengaar jumped into the conversation. "Of course he has. Hix is going to be a great warrior, just you see." He blushed at her praise.

The news, though not unexpected, brought mixed emotions to Flik. Even after all this time, his antipathy for the philosophy of his homeland was raw. But looking at Hix, he couldn't help but feel proud of the young man. After all, he'd been Hix's first tutor in swordplay, many years ago. "Is that so?" Flik replied. "I hope you succeed."

"Mister Flik, when will you be returning home?"

Hix's question caught him off guard. The truth was that he did not plan on ever returning to Warrior's Village. During the Liberation War, he'd gone back simply as a member of Tir McDohl's army. Neither he nor the elders of the village had treated it as the completion of his journey.

"Hix, you shouldn't tease him like that," Tengaar declared. "After all, Flik's ritual journey remains unfinished."

Her comment stung Flik more than the question. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, a look that suggested she knew she'd touched a sore spot. He bit down on the inside of his lip to keep from scowling. Hastily, he fumbled for a retort. "You're wearing your hair differently than the last time I saw you, Tengaar. Aren't unmarried Warrior's Village women supposed to have two braids?"

On impulse she reached around to touch her single braid, stopped, and sniffed loudly. "I'll be married soon enough," she replied haughtily. "As soon as Hix is accepted as a full-fledged warrior."

Viktor chuckled at the by-play, then turned to speak with Hix. "So, where does your manhood journey take you next?"

"Kobold Village," Hix answered. "They say there's a trial called 'The Test of the Unicorn' in that village. Tengaar wants me to try it." He looked less than enthused by the prospect, but smiled when she looked over at him.

"We're heading for the same place," Riou chimed in. "Maybe we could help you?"

Hix opened his mouth, but Tengaar was the one who answered, shaking her head vigorously. "No, no, it has to be done by Hix alone. Otherwise it wouldn't be much of a test of his manhood."

Nanami finally spoke up. "Sounds pretty tough." Her face brightened with excitement. "Is there really a unicorn?"

"That's what the legends say," Tengaar confirmed. "But Hix has to face it alone."

"I understand," Riou said. "At least we can travel together."

"Sure!" Hix answered excitedly, but turned to see what Tengaar thought.

She yawned hugely. "That's fine, as long as they stay out of the way during the test. I'm going to bed now."

Her yawn worked its way from person to person until all of them were blinking sleepily. The innkeeper scurried on over to announce that a couple of the guests had graciously decided to voluntarily give up their rooms so that Riou and his party could sleep in peace. Flik wondered if the innkeeper's bouncers had done some arm-twisting, but was too tired to press him on the subject. Apparently Riou was too tired as well, and made no argument about it.

Tengaar and Nanami ended up sharing one room, while the four men and kobold were jammed into the other. Viktor's soldiers would spend the night sleeping in the common room. The innkeeper brought up a couple of extra cots for the men's room, but Flik decided to try his luck with the wooden floor. He rolled up his cape to serve as a pillow and closed his eyes. Viktor started snoring loudly. Flik shrugged, at least the room wasn't too cold.

His dreams carried him back to his time with Odessa, and towards his homeland. It was nighttime, and they were sheltering against the lee side of an embankment, without so much as a fire to warm the cool air. The day had been difficult; a meeting with an informant in Antei had turned into a cunning double-cross, and they'd had to run for their lives.

Flik looked over at Odessa, her face partially lit by the moons. She was beautiful, but always seemed sad, rarely smiling. He'd only been with her organization for a few months, but he knew about the death of her fiancée. Her eyes were closed, she seemed to be resting, so Flik let his gaze linger on her. If only he could make her smile somehow, then her beauty would be radiant.

A foot stepped on the top of the embankment, showering loose dirt down into the hollow. Odessa's eyes flew open and Flik quickly snapped his head away, feeling a blush creeping up his cheeks. He remembered to stand up and draw his sword, preparing to face the intruder.

He relaxed when he saw that it was only the third member of their group, Humphrey Mintz. The taciturn swordsman nodded to Flik and spoke gravely to Odessa. "They've stopped pursuing." He walked past Flik and took a seat against the slope.

She closed her eyes again, sighing bitterly. "I don't understand," she whispered. "I thought for certain that he was loyal to our cause. Why would he betray us?"

Humphrey shrugged. "Potch. Position. Women. Maybe he just didn't give a damn." Flik blinked, that was more words at one time out of the former Elite Guard than he'd ever heard.

"He doesn't give a damn?" Odessa exploded. "How can people not see that the emperor is growing more and more despotic? Doesn't anyone care that he's abusing the Sovereign Rune to enslave people's minds?" Sarcastically she added, "If we're just going to meekly submit to overlords with True Runes, then we should've stayed a part of Harmonia. They have so much more experience with slaves!"

She pulled up her knees almost to her chin, wrapped her arms around her legs, and hid her face from view. From the way she was shaking, Flik could tell that she was crying. He and Humphrey exchanged a glance, neither man entirely sure how to comfort Odessa, or if it was even proper to do so. But it tore at his heart to leave her like that.

Looking at Humphrey one more time for moral support, he knelt next to Odessa and placed his hand on her shoulder. She tensed and looked up questioningly at him. For a moment it was all Flik could do to keep his hand on her shoulder, so badly did he want to either pull away from her or rush forward and embrace her. Finally he mustered up the courage to say, "Things will get better, my lady. We can find more allies. We will win in the end."

Her tears had etched streaks through the dust on her face, but when she replied by smiling shyly, an upward twitch at the corners of her mouth, Flik knew that he'd been right about that making her shine. Embarrassed, he took his hand off her shoulder and sat back against the dirt, catching glimpses of her out of the corner of his eyes. "Thank you, Flik," she murmured.

They sat in silence for a while, but the mood was no longer depressed. Flik could tell that Odessa's agile mind was working on some new scheme. She was astounding in her ability to change plans when the need arose. After a quarter hour of thinking, she turned her head in his direction. "Flik, I don't think I've asked before, but you come from Warrior's Village, yes?"

The very name brought waves of revulsion to Flik's stomach. He bit the inside of his lips to keep the grimace off his face. "I was born there," he answered as naturally as he could.

She hesitated before asking her next question. "I was wondering if you might tell me about their views on our conflict."

"You've sent messengers to them before?" Flik asked. When she nodded, he continued, "What was their answer?"

"They have always declined to aid us, but at least they don't help the emperor, either."

Flik laughed derisively, letting out a bit of his anger in one short burst. Both Odessa and Humphrey looked at him, surprise evident on their faces. "They're not going to help you," Flik explained. "It would violate their precious neutrality. You see, in Warrior's Village, they spend all their time in training, honing their skills. Life is nothing but a series of challenges, where a warrior pits himself against great beasts, famous knights, or high mountains, all to prove his worth over and over to the elders."

Some flying bug buzzed too close to his ear, and he paused to swing wildly at it, filling the strike with as much vengeance as he could. Not surprisingly, he didn't hit the insect. Gathering his breath, Flik continued to describe his homeland. "But they don't care much about solving real problems. During the Succession War, I remember how the elders refused to let us participate. They said it was not our place to get involved in a war over the throne. Think how things would've been different if we'd joined Barbarossa's side in the beginning. The war would've ended much sooner, Jowston wouldn't have invaded, Gregminster wouldn't have been burned, the Kalekka Incident would never have happened."

Humphrey shifted uncomfortably at the mention of the massacre that had turned him against his own commander, changing the course of his life forever. Odessa continued to smile. "Now I see why you are so vehement about helping people."

"I could never stand by and boast about the beasts I've killed when people are out here suffering and being enslaved."

Odessa giggled, but quickly turned serious. "Humphrey, Flik, I'm glad that both of you care. I hope that all of us will be there at the end, when we finally see all of our troubles vanquished."

The dream rolled away, submerged in the roiling forth of Flik's subconscious. He cried out and stirred in his sleep, but the noise was masked by Viktor's snores. Eventually Flik's sleep grew easy.

He did not wake until nearly midmorning. Luckily, everyone else in the party was also sleeping in, exhausted from the festivities and staying up late. The innkeeper remained solicitous, offering a hearty breakfast that consisted of a lot of fried fish and fried potato, sliced thinly. One of the first things Flik noticed this morning was that Tengaar had rebraided her hair into two braids. She sniffed at him, as if to say that she meant to have her hair in this style.

Hix came down later, carrying several bags on his back and in his hands. Everyone else was finishing their meal when Hix deposited his stuff on the floor and sat down to eat.

Viktor experimentally kicked one the sacks. "What you got in there? Feels pretty substantial."

"Stuff for our journey," Hix mumbled around a bite of fish. "Tengaar thinks we might need it."

Viktor plunged a hand into the bag he'd kicked. "Hey!" Tengaar squawked indignantly. "Don't touch that."

"Interesting," Viktor observed, pulling an article of clothing out of the bag. It was a red article of clothing. A red dress. A very close tailored red dress of silk, with a gold fringe at the ends of the sleeves, the high neckline, and the long skirt. There was also gold outlining a fairly substantial circular cutout in the bosom. And that was precisely where Viktor's hand was, having grabbed the back of the dress through that hole to pull it out of the bag.

"Don't touch a woman's things," Tengaar shouted, leaping up from her spot next to Nanami and stomping towards Viktor.

Amazingly, Viktor complied, his hands jerking away from the garment as if it were as hot as the color suggested. Tengaar swooped in and grabbed the dress, cradling it against her body.

Flik suddenly had a hard time speaking. "Is that…for your journey too?"

"It was a gift from General Milich after the war," Tengaar snapped. "He said the style was from someplace called Armes, and that it was the height of fashion among the ladies."

Flik wondered what General Milich was after, giving her that dress, but was distracted by the sudden thought that the men of Armes were extremely lucky. He shook his head, only to find that he was now imagining Odessa wearing the red dress. Vaguely, he wondered if she'd had the right build for it, but found his daydream had already adjusted her physique.

Then Tengaar stuffed the dress back into the bag, snuffing out the fantasy like an extinguished candle. Flik shook his head again, aware of the glaze in Viktor's eyes and the furious blush on Hix's face. Nanami leaned over to whisper harshly in Riou's ear, and he began blinking rapidly. One of Viktor's men was drooling, right into the remains of his breakfast.

To turn his mind from the dress, Flik opened another bag, a much heavier bag. Grunting, he pulled out the haft of a three-headed morning star, the balls dangling at the ends of three separate chains. The whole contraption had to weigh more than forty pounds. "Hix," Flik set his feet to stabilize himself, "have you been carrying this around for the last two years?"

Tengaar didn't give him a chance to answer. "It's time to get going," she announced. "We don't want to waste the whole day sitting here."

Hix looked down at his mostly full plate. "Can we wait until I've finished eating?"

Tengaar grabbed him by the arm and started pulling him towards the door. "Real men don't whine," she lectured. "Come on, we're leaving." She looked back at the bags on the floor. "Flik, Viktor, bring that stuff along. And don't peek at any of it!"

Such was the force of her order that Flik was hefting two of the bags before he knew it.

The day was bright and very warm under a cloudless sky, with a gentle, dry wind from the southwest. Tengaar's bags were shared out among Viktor's men, and the whole party set out afoot at a leisurely pace. Tengaar quickly started badgering Viktor and Flik for information about their part in the war. Viktor and Flik traded storytelling duties, one picking up for the other when each got tired. Riou added his own parts to the tale, telling of how he and Jowy got their runes and of their exploration of the Sindar Ruins.

When they were done, Tengaar looked appraisingly at Riou. "Did you really lead three hundred men against a Highland general?"

"I did," Riou answered, voice betraying no pride.

"Were you frightened?"

Riou thought about his response for several minutes. Flik could hear dirt crunching under people's boots and shoes as they continued walking. Finally, Riou said, "I was scared beforehand, but when I had to do it, I realized that everyone was counting on me. I didn't want everybody's efforts to be in vain."

Tengaar smiled happily. "You see, Hix, that's exactly the right attitude. Don't worry so much about whether you can pass the Test of the Unicorn. Once you're in it, you won't fail."

"If you say so," Hix answered uneasily.

Tengaar betrayed no agitation at Hix's lackluster response, instead striking up a conversation with Nanami and Riou about Master Genkaku's training style. The remainder of that day passed easily enough. The rutted dirt road was quiet, as if the recent battle was still weighing on traders' minds. They spent that night camping on the Tigermouth Road, about halfway between Two River and Kobold Village.

The following day brought no shift in the weather, it was still hot and dry. Around noon Flik spotted the dense woodland that was the Forest of the Unicorn. As before, he was struck by how the trees simply stopped about ten yards from the road.

Viktor whistled slowly. "That's impressive. Kind of reminds you of the Forest of Illusion in Toran."

Tengaar looked excited. "That's where the test is, I bet. It looks so wild!"

"Uh…yeah," Hix added.

"Is there really a unicorn in there?" Tengaar asked Gengen, echoing the question Flik had asked the kobold the first time he'd heard the name.

"It's an old tradition," Gengen explained. "I believe it, but nobody's gone into the deepest parts of the forest since before I was born."

This new did not dampen Tengaar's spirits. "We'll just have to be the first since that time." Hix slumped resignedly.

They continued on with the forest at their right hand, and the road slowly turned towards the west. This time they were not accosted by any kobold patrols, but approached the village unescorted. Soon enough, Flik could discern the reason for that. As they entered, they found the village to be in a riot of activity. Kobolds thronged in the streets, greeting each other, or passing around food and drink. Festival streamers were strung amongst the houses and trees, and everywhere they looked there seemed to be some sort of celebration going on.

Hix looked around at all the excitement and started smiling. "Some of that food looks tasty," he commented. "Let's stop and get something to eat."

"No!" Tengaar shouted over the noise. "We have to find the chief." She looked at Flik and Gengen. "Go ahead, lead us there."

Gengen looked disappointed. For that matter, Flik wanted to find out what the festival was about. He shrugged his shoulders, knowing he'd learn soon enough, and walked into the village. Caught up in their merrymaking, the kobolds seemed to accept the new arrivals as just another group of humans. Even with the festival, there were still some merchants doing business. One was capitalizing on the kobold's propensity towards things that shined brightly, selling an assortment of stones in various colors, including yellow, purple, and blue. Another was showing a set of elaborate chimes, colored bells strung together. A third was dealing in roses, bouquets of white, pink, and red flowers.

They made their way to the largest house in the town, farthest from the entrance, right against the deeper woods. "This is the place, isn't it?" Tengaar asked. Without waiting for confirmation, she grabbed Hix by the arm and pushed him towards the entrance.

"Do I really have to?" Hix protested, looking around for some escape.

"You want to be a real man?" Tengaar scolded. "Then in you go." She shoved him through the open door and followed in after him.

Viktor glanced at Flik. "Are all Warrior's Village women so…pushy?"

"No," Flik replied. "Just Warrior's Village women in a hurry to get married."

"She shouldn't pressure him that much," Riou added.

Nanami giggled. "I think it's cute."

They entered the chief's house. No one seemed to notice; all of the occupants were focused on Tengaar and Hix, who stood in front of the chief. Flik recognized Cham immediately. The elder was shaking his head and said, "I cannot permit you to enter the deepest part of the Forest of the Unicorn. I do not even let my fiercest warriors in there."

"But we came all this way," Tengaar cried, exasperated.

Hix, oddly enough, looked downhearted too. "We can find another test, Tengaar. Let's just forget this one."

"No!" Tengaar exclaimed. "No, this is the one. The legends state that a Unicorn shall appear for a 'Noble Warrior and a Pure-hearted Maiden.' Don't you get it? If you defeat the Unicorn, that proves that you're a true warrior. No one will ever be able to dispute that."

Cham barked a few slow laughs. "That's such an old custom, too. Nobody ever thinks about it anymore. I don't know that anybody even believes in the Unicorn, though we say the forest is sacred."

"How can you say that?" Tengaar responded.

"I believe in the Unicorn!" growled a voice from Flik's side. It was Gengen, who boldly walked towards Cham. "Let them go in, elder. The Unicorn will surely appear."

Cham chuckled again. "Such faith, warrior Gengen, but let's talk about it some other time. I see that you've brought several more humans with you. Is that Flik that I see? Come, you have arrived in time for our celebration. Tonight we celebrate the victory at Two River City!" He raised his voice into a howl.

Hix eagerly turned to Tengaar. "We can't refuse a celebration, especially for victorious warriors. Besides, it'll be good to relax a little."

"Are you tired?" Tengaar snapped. "What a fine warrior you'll make," she continued sarcastically. "Why, they'll throw you the greatest parade in the history of Warrior's Village." She stormed towards the doorway, forcing Gengen, Flik, and Viktor to jump aside.

Cham turned to Hix. "You two come from Warrior's Village?" Hix was too distraught to answer. He took a deep breath and rushed after Tengaar. Cham closed his eyes, pondering something. "Never mind," he said. "Let us prepare for the great feast."

Several long tables and rows of benches were placed out in front of the elder's house. The kobold cooks, who'd been laboring all day for this moment, brought out huge platters filled with varying food, though the cuisine did lean heavily towards the meat end of the spectrum. Flik thought he recognized one dish as kobold pie. Then the participants arrived. The newcomers, being guests of honor, were seated around Cham at the middle of the table. Tengaar, in fact, took the seat at his right hand, while Flik sat to his immediate left. He found the table to be much too low for his liking.

One of the first things Flik did was to introduce Riou as the leader of the New State Army. Cham immediately jumped up on his bench and said, "I saw you in the battle, using the rune of the hero Genkaku. I like your mettle, young warrior. Know that my kobolds will stand beside you as you drive the Highland Army from our country." He punctuated that statement with another howl, which was taken up by all the kobolds around him.

The kobolds, like all good sentient creatures, had an alcoholic drink that they liked to overindulge in during their celebrations. However, it looked like nothing Flik had ever seen. It wasn't made by fermenting grains or grapes but, as Cham told him with relish, by fermenting goat's milk. Flik took a couple of sips and found it to be as sour as it was potent. Viktor, not surprisingly, started quaffing the stuff by the gobletful and the kobolds, more surprisingly, used rather large goblets. Flik found it amusing, watching them lap the stuff out of their overlarge containers.

Some hours later, the party came to a lethargic end. Viktor was face down on the table, snoring loudly, several half-finished goblets scattered all around him. Nanami had also fallen asleep, though Flik didn't know if she was drunk or simply tired. Riou, noticing her condition, gathered her in his arms and started walking back towards the elder's house. Cham was busy listening to Tengaar, who seemed to be whispering excitedly in his ear. Hix, ignored by Tengaar, looked despondent. After a moment, he got up from the table to help Riou. Flik also stood up, stretched out his arms and legs, and followed them back to the elder's house.

After tucking Nanami into one of the beds in the back of the house, the three men found that some bedrolls had been spread out for them behind a cloth partition. They sat down, but no one was ready to go to sleep just yet.

Flik looked over at Hix and read his worried expression. "How are you feeling? Tengaar seemed pretty upset earlier."

Hix shrugged uncertainly. "No, it's all my fault. Mister Flik, you must be so ashamed to see what I've become, a coward. And Riou, wasn't it, I'm sorry that you've been dragged into my problems."

Flik looked directly at his former pupil. "I don't think you're a coward. You were very brave when you helped us fight Neclord."

Hix shook his head. "But I had you and Mister Viktor and all the others to help me. Besides, I was still afraid."

Flik was busy working out a suitable response when Riou chimed in. "What's the purpose behind your trip, if I may ask?"

Hix looked at Flik to explain. Once again, Flik had to wrestle with his emotions on the subject, but opted to leave his own experiences aside for the moment. "In Warrior's Village, when a young man reaches the age of maturity, he must set out on a mission to justify his worth as a warrior, and justify the years of training that he received." He saw Riou's confused look and searched for a metaphor. "It's like at a university. As the time for graduation nears, the student submits a paper to a panel of his teachers. That paper is supposed to be the culmination of all his years of learning and must reflect that. If the panel deems the paper worthy, the student is then graduated, if not, then all those years of study are called into question."

Now Hix took up the conversation. "And Tengaar wants me to become a really great warrior, so my mission must reflect that. I know she cares about me, she's always fighting for my best interests." He looked away and sighed. "But I don't know if I can live up to her expectations. I mean, I'm not a great warrior like you, Mister Flik, or Mister Viktor. I haven't even faced down an enemy general like Riou did."

Of course, in Tengaar's estimation Flik probably wasn't a great warrior, since he hadn't yet completed his journey, Flik decided ruefully. He didn't say that to Hix. Instead, he said, "I know you are a great warrior, Hix. I fought alongside you during the Liberation War. You were with me, with my unit, at the Floating Fortress, and then at Gregminster. I don't think anyone could doubt your ability."

Hix looked down at his feet. "But I do, and I know that makes me weak. Now Tengaar is mad at me, too. I wish, with everything in my heart, that I was strong enough to make her happy." With those words, he lay down on his roll and turned away, ending the conversation.

Flik got up and blew out the lights, then returned to try and sleep. He understood Hix's words, for they paralleled his own early feelings with Odessa. He also knew that Hix would not listen to him. After all, it was not Flik's approval that he craved, but Tengaar's. With a yawn, he resolved to speak to her about that in the morning. She would probably tell him to mind his own business, but at least he would try. With that thought in his head, he rolled over and went to sleep.

That night he dreamed of his youth in Warrior's Village, but as is often the case with such dreams, things got jumbled. Viktor was there, and Odessa. Mathiu seemed to be their instructor, but all he kept saying was "Do not forget the sacrifice!" over and over again. Then Tengaar and Hix were there, too, but the earth suddenly opened up at her feet and she fell into a crevice. Hix screamed after her, and that was what woke Flik up.

"Tengaar! _Tengaar!_ Please wake up, Tengaar!" The tone in Hix's voice brought Flik to wakefulness in moments.

Viktor, in the bedroll next to Flik's, rolled over and mumbled, "Why does it have to be so early in the morning?"

Riou was already up, walking from the room, but stopped abruptly when he got a good look into the girls' bedroom. "What happened?" he asked, appalled.

Whatever it was, Flik knew it was bad. The sadness, loss, and despair evident in Hix's voice were akin to the feelings he had felt immediately after learning the truth of Odessa's death. With trepidation settling on him like a cloak, Flik got up and walked to the adjoining room.


	35. Chapter 35 The Unicorn's Test

**Chapter 35 – The Unicorn's Test**

Flik couldn't see much of Tengaar because of the crowd around her. Riou, Gengen, and Hix stood in front of him, and Cham, the kobold chief, blocked the way to the bed. Nanami was sitting up on her bed looking concerned. Viktor stomped in from the other room and asked, "What's up?"

Finally Cham seemed to find his voice. "Yes…well, um…we've studied some books and…drat it!" Flik sighed; he could tell the kobold elder was clearly distressed.

Somebody in the room cleared a their throat with a hearty, "Ah-HEM!" For some reason, the sound seemed feminine. Was it Nanami?

Cham was speaking again. "It's the Curse of the Unicorn, that's it! That's what we agreed on."

Hix pushed forward, clearing a view of the bed for Flik. Tengaar's head was visible, reclining on her pillow. Her eyes were closed, but her breathing seemed normal, and her skin didn't appear pale. "What is the Curse of the Unicorn?" Hix asked.

Cham had trouble finding his voice. "It's, uh, it's very, very bad. Very terrible. It's because she, uh, spoke about the Test of the Unicorn too lightly. The Unicorn has come and…uh…stolen her spirit away. She will not rise from this bed." Cham was obviously struggling with this. Flik wondered if the curse was so awful that it frightened the normally courageous chief.

"But there's a cure, right?" Hix asked desperately.

"A cure, a cure," Cham mused. "We did talk about that, what was it?" He paced in the limited space available, looking concernedly at Tengaar. "That's right!" he exclaimed. "What you need to do is bring the Blue Stone of Purity, Green Bell of Knowledge, and Red Flower of Sacrifice to the Unicorn's Meadow in the deepest part of the forest. Only then can she be saved."

"Chief, I don't think I've heard of any of those items," Gengen commented.

"That's because they are only mentioned in the oldest, most sacred of our tribe's texts," Cham replied. "Even I did not know about these things until this morning."

"Never mind," Hix interrupted. "Where can we find the three things we need?"

Cham hesitated again. "We will, uh, need to go to three locations in the Forest of the Unicorn. Each item can only be obtained after overcoming a perilous trial."

Hix drove a fist into his palm. "I'll do it," he said seriously. "I'll do anything to save Tengaar."

Cham nodded. "Then I shall have the gate into the forest opened and see that you have guides to the three locations."

Hix looked back at his companions. "Will you help me get to each site? I'll do the trials by myself." Riou nodded agreement. Viktor chimed in, "Of course!" Flik looked at Tengaar. She didn't appear that sick, but he wasn't willing to take any chances. He added his agreement. Nanami, on the other hand, said she'd stay behind to keep an eye on Tengaar's condition.

In half an hour, the group of four men, Gengen, and their kobold guides were ready at the little gate that marked the boundary between village and forest. Cham opened his mouth to say a few words, but was cut off by a resounding sneeze from the direction of his house.

"Was that Nanami?" Viktor asked. The sneeze had been distinctly feminine, despite its volume.

"I don't think so," Riou answered.

"We're wasting time," Hix protested. "Tengaar could expire at any moment, so I don't want to wait around. Lead us in."

The leader of the kobold guides turned out to be Ren, the tall, gray kobold who's patrol had intercepted Flik the first time he'd been in Kobold Village. Ren finished scratching one of his long, droopy ears and declared, "Let's get on with it. I have been told that the Blue Stone of Purity is on the island in the middle of Ice Springs Lake."

Flik was struck by how much information the kobolds had gleaned in such a short time. He turned to ask Cham about this. "Your sacred texts are surprisingly clear about this, aren't they?"

Cham scratched behind one ear in a self-conscious manner. "We kobolds are really a simple sort of people. We're just no good at subterfuge, that's all."

That was the end of the conversation, for Hix strode off into the forest without waiting for the guides. Flik and the others had to jog to catch up to him. Most of their kobold escort quickly fanned out into the trees, leaving only Ren with them.

The forest was quiet and shadowy. Sunlight, in those few places where it did break the canopy, fell in brilliant streams of light that after awhile were painful to look at. Somewhere in the distance Flik thought he heard birds singing, but he never saw any evidence of them.

The trees were huge and old, standing bunched together like great wooden pillars supporting a green ceiling. None of them had any low-hanging branches. Despite all this, the Forest of the Unicorn did not seem very threatening to Flik. Instead it felt ancient, kind of like a dusty room in an old house.

Another thought came to Flik's head. This forest was very much like an ancient graveyard, where time has worn all the names and dates off the stone. He could feel that this place was special, he just didn't know why. He was certain this forest was older than any of the current nations he knew about, even Holy Harmonia. Perhaps it was older than legendary Aronia.

Regardless of the forest's age, Ren led them down a fairly well defined path, ducking around tree trunks that were wider than all of them put together. Flik guessed that they were moving in a northwesterly direction, but he was far from sure of it. After a few hours of hiking, the forest abruptly cleared out, opening out onto the shore of a small lake. A bare island stood in the waters, about a half-mile distant from where they were standing. The far shore rose up in a series of tree-lined bluffs and ridges, the foothills of the Tinto Mountains.

Ren nodded to Hix. "This is where the Blue Stone of Purity is, on that island in the middle of the lake. Let us rest a moment, and then we can retrieve it."

Hix was already pulling off his gear. "Tengaar cannot wait!" He took off his vest, shirt, and pants, handing these items to Flik. "Keep these safe for me." Turning, he sprinted towards the water.

In a very human gesture, Ren slapped his forehead in frustration. "Wait, you fool! That lake is fed by bone chilling springs."

Hix shouted once as he hit the water, continued forward, and dove under the surface, coming up in a powerful free-stroke.

Ren growled angrily. "I told the chief that this was a bad idea, but would he listen to me? No."

Flik rubbed at his forehead. "You told the chief what?"

Ren jumped, startled. "Ignore that. We've got to focus on rescuing him. He'll never make it, the cold in the water will overcome him before he's half-way there."

"How do we save him?" Riou asked.

Ren immediately ran towards the nearest clump of trees and began tapping on each one in succession. "We've prepared for emergencies," he declared. "Occasionally one of the young pups makes his way down here to try and impress his friends." He knocked on another tree, this one produced a hollow sound. After some fumbling, he managed to open a door carved into the trunk and produced two items: a towel and a fire rune piece. "You must get to him, get him dried off, and warm him with the rune piece, or else he'll be in serious trouble."

Viktor jerked a thumb towards the lake. "How are we supposed to do that? Hix's already a quarter of the way to the island."

Ren pointed to a spot on the beach. "There's a rowboat there. I was going to suggest that he row to the island, but he began before I was finished explaining."

"Let's go, Viktor," Flik said, grabbing the towel and rune piece from Ren. The rune piece looked like nothing more than a sliver of crystal with flames flickering on the inside, but it was warm to the touch. "We can make it if we work together." He started running for the craft.

"Right behind you," Viktor affirmed. Together they jumped into the boat, their momentum driving it a little ways out into the water. Once the boat settled, the two men began looking for the oars. After a thorough examination, they saw that the oars had been knocked free and left on the beach by their mad rush to get going. Viktor jumped out, cringed in the cold water that came up to his thighs, and splashed back to pick up their propulsion. He waded back, tossed the oars to Flik, then nearly capsized the whole operation climbing into the boat.

They paddled furiously. Flik could see Hix well ahead of him. The rowboat began to turn away from the youth, and Flik, though he'd been trained in small craft piloting back in Warrior's Village, was too distraught to reason out the problem. The boat continued to angle away from Hix, the angle opening out with each stroke the two men put in.

From the shore, Ren shouted, "Alternate sides!" Flik, reflexively, drove his paddle into the water on the opposite side of the boat. But so did Viktor. The boat canted sharply, the back end cutting through water they'd already churned up. Awkwardly, in jerks and turns, they pulled the boat closer and closer to Hix. Flik kept his eyes on the boy, watching his strokes through the water. Was Hix tiring? It wasn't easy to tell.

Flik redoubled his efforts, focusing all his attention on getting to Hix. Hix's pace suddenly broke down, his head disappearing under the water, and breaking the surface again. He struggled on. Flik gritted his teeth determinedly, they were close now. All Hix had to do was hang on for a couple more seconds.

Then Flik's oar scraped against the pebbly bottom of the lake. He looked up and flinched as they propelled the rowboat full speed into the shore of the island, kicking up a spray of little rocks and water, and grinding to a loud halt. Hix, having swum the whole distance, staggered up the shore, noticed a rock that was as blue as his lips, and grabbed it triumphantly.

He swayed on his feet when Flik pressed the fire shard into his other hand and Viktor draped the towel around him. "Mister Flik, Mister Viktor, what're you two doing here?" He looked at the blue stone in his hands. "I did it, see? I got the stone."

Viktor whacked him on the back, toppling him into Flik. "Congratulations, Hix. You did a great job. I don't think I could've swum to the island like that."

"It's nothing," Hix chattered, a little color coming back to him. "It's all for Tengaar."

"Let's get back to the others," Flik suggested. The three of them returned to the rowboat and, with Viktor and Flik rowing on alternate sides, crossed back to the other shore in very little time.

Hix wasn't fully recovered when the boat scraped up, more gently than before, against the land. He had to be helped up to his feet, but he waved off any further assistance. Gengen was ecstatic over Hix's perseverance, but Riou's expression was concerned, and Ren's was downright frantic.

"No, no!" the kobold guide said. "We should not go any farther. I told the chief that this was all-"

Hix was weaving about, trying to pull on his shirt, but still declared forcefully, "I'm going on. If you won't help me, then I'll find the next item by myself." He got his head through the neck of his shirt, reached unsteadily for his pants, and lost his footing, falling to the ground.

Flik knew there would be no stopping Hix, so he helped him back to his feet. Once Hix was finished dressing, the group turned back into the forest. Flik kept his eye on the youth, but Hix seemed to recover his strength quickly. It was a good thing the day was warm, even in the shade of the trees.

Their bearing was to the northeast, Flik guessed. They walked amongst the giant trees again, Ren easily picking his way along a vague path. Slightly past noon, the kobold stopped in front of an enormous trunk. "This is the place we call 'Watch Tree.' From the very top, you may look out over the entire forest and even out to the plains beyond. The Green Bell of Knowledge has been placed in the upper branches."

Flik wondered over the words "has been placed." It sounded as though these items had been put there this very morning. Perhaps Ren had meant to say something else, but was not very familiar with human languages?

"All I have to do is climb this tree?" Hix asked.

"Yes," Ren answered. "But first, if you will come around to the other side-"

His comment was far too late, for Hix had already started up the tree. The youth groaned for every handhold, but steadily worked his way higher, finally reaching the first of the great branches.

Ren watched him, mouth agape. "Are all humans so blindly reckless?" he asked Gengen.

"It's their impulsiveness that makes them endearing," Gengen replied. "I don't think a day's gone by where I've been bored."

They walked around to the other side of the trunk, where a ladder had been built into the bark. "There's a platform, nearly at the top, where we can greet him when he comes back," Ren announced. "Who wishes to climb up?"

Riou went up first, then Gengen. Viktor simply said, "I think I'll stay down here. I like to keep my feet firmly rooted on something solid. Besides, somebody's got to keep an eye out for monsters." Flik didn't push him, but started up the ladder. Ren came last.

Despite the ease of their climb, they did not overtake Hix. Eventually Flik had to concentrate on his own ascent, the great height focusing his thoughts entirely on getting to the top safely. He did not look back, but he knew the ground was a long way down.

All of a sudden, they were above most of the other trees, and Flik could feel the wind rushing in through the branches and leaves. It threatened to tear him off the ladder.

"Just a little further!" Riou called excitedly.

Flik didn't look up, not wanting to relax his guard. Moments later, his hand came up against the wooden floor of the landing. He pulled himself in and stood, looking around at his surroundings. The view drew his eyes first. The green tops of the Forest of the Unicorn were visible all around him, but he could also see the mountains to the west, plains and marshes to the east, and the Lana River to the north.

Ren tapped at Flik's feet. "Can you move aside, please? I'd like to get up."

Startled, Flik looked down, saw the kobold waiting on the ladder, and stepped aside. The four of them were now on the platform and it was somewhat crowded. Luckily there was a railing, but to Flik's consternation, it had been designed for kobolds. He edged away, worried that with a wrong move he might end up pitched over and falling to his doom.

There was the slight tinkling of bells, and Hix reappeared, climbing down onto the platform. He didn't even seem to realize it was there, not until he banged a foot loudly on the wood. He looked around and noticed everyone waiting for him. "Hello. Look, I have the Green Bell!" He thrust out a string of little green bells.

"Hix, your fingers!" Flik exclaimed. As might be expected, the youth's fingertips and palms were bloodied. At that point, he began to comprehend the depth of Hix's love for Tengaar. Ever since Flik had fallen in love with Odessa, and especially after her death, he'd been certain that their love had been special, more pure and more real than all of the more mundane loves around him. Even Viktor's love of Anabelle had been suspect in Flik's mind, though he never would've told Viktor that. Now he understood that he'd been wrong. Hix was obviously willing to suffer any injury to save Tengaar, even to the point of death. There couldn't be any stronger love than that.

"Here, let me see your hands," Riou said. He placed Hix's hands between his own and called on the power of the Bright Shield, and light from the rune shined, causing Flik to look away. When the brightness was gone, he looked back and saw that Hix's hands had been repaired.

Hix flexed his fingers experimentally, breaking out in a surprised smile. "Thank you, Lord Riou. The pain was starting to get to me a little."

There was a burst of wind, ripping leaves that were brown and wrinkled off branches all around the platform. A large branch gave way, banging down to the forest floor. "What is going on here?" Ren asked. "Those leaves were green a minute ago."

"It's the rune," Riou explained sadly. "It destroys things in order to bring healing."

Ren backed away from Riou's hand as if the teenager held a viper in it. "Perhaps we'd better return to the ground. There's still one more trial to go, and the afternoon is moving on."

After one glance at the westerly sun shining through dead leaves, Flik began the journey back down. When his feet again touched the earth, he found Viktor staring at the branch that had fallen. "The darn thing came out of nowhere," he groused. "Nearly caught me napping, except for all the noise it made. Now why'd a branch that big die?" The width of the thing was greater than Viktor's torso, and it stretched out over some thirty feet, but every leaf on it was brown.

Flik explained the events in the tree as the group moved off to the southeast. He didn't talk about his revelation on love. This leg of the quest didn't appear to take much time at all. It felt like only a little more than an hour had passed when Ren pulled up at the edge of a thick bramble. Clearly visible through the tangle of thorny vines was a red flower.

However, before Hix could charge off into the mess, Ren grabbed him by the arm and proceeded to lead him around to the other side of the bushes. He paused at the beginning of a well-tended path through the vines, a path that clearly led right to the flower. "This is the third trial," he declared. "All you have to do is walk in there and pick the flower, got it? You don't need to do anything more, just walk in and then walk out. Understand?"

"I understand," Hix replied.

Ren let go of his arm. Hix immediately jogged back around to the other side, shouted, "For Tengaar!" and plunged straight into the thorns.

Ren turned to Gengen. "Surely all humans aren't as reckless as that?"

Gengen shook his head. "No, this one is unusual even by human standards."

Listening to Hix grunt and thrash his way through the vines, Flik had to agree. Regardless, a few minutes later, Hix appeared on the path that Ren had suggested, the red flower in his hand. His face and lower arms were covered in long red welts and cuts, but his clothes had come through the ordeal reasonably intact.

When Riou offered healing this time, Hix refused, saying, "We need to get to Tengaar as quickly as possible. Let's go!"

Ren glanced one more time at the thorn bushes and then spoke to Hix. "We shall now head for the Unicorn's Meadow. Beware, for if you are not the 'Noble Warrior,' your life shall surely be forfeit to the Unicorn. You should think about that."

Gengen looked sharply at Ren. "The Unicorn won't reject him. Look at all he's done today."

Hix frowned, as if aware of what he was planning to do for the first time. "I hope the Unicorn accepts me. Take me there, please."

Ren looked pleased. "I will. It'll be good to get this over with."

They trudged on, heading more or less due south, as the light from the sun began to give way to dusky gloom. Flik's stomach growled and he realized that he hadn't eaten since last night's banquet. A firefly twinkled nearby, and he saw more swirling around the lower branches of the great trees. Full night had descended.

When Flik looked back down, he saw a line of lights in the distance. Ren angled the group towards those lights. Ten minutes later, Hix was the first to step into the knee-high grass of the Unicorn's Meadow. Two rows of tall, slender lamp stands had been set with paper lanterns, leading towards the single tree in the middle of the field. A lone figure stood waiting for them in front of the tree.

Hix broke into a sprint. "Tengaar! You're alive, how?" He didn't wait for her answer, but gathered her up into a fierce hug. Flik thought the teenager was crying, though he wasn't too sure given the shadows.

A resonating cheer of, "Hooray for the Warrior Hix!" rolled out of the forest all around Flik, causing him to check over his shoulder. Out of the woods marched a band of kobolds, led by Cham. Nanami, looking fresh and smelling bathed, bounded out to stand by her brother. Viktor, puzzled, glanced in Flik's direction. For his part, he was busy putting together all the loose phrases he'd heard from Ren and Cham today.

Hix also seemed to be working things out in his head. "Tengaar? Was the…how did you-"

She put a finger to his lips, smiling gleefully. "Look at you, Hix! You ran all through that forest, without a thought to your safety, just for my sake. You're such a great warrior already, you just needed some more confidence."

So it had all been set up, Flik decided. Somehow, Tengaar and Cham must've worked this out. Images of her whispering conspiratorially to the kobold chief during the celebration flashed through his mind.

Hix figured this out too. "I'm not a great warrior," he said dejectedly. "Was everything I did…meaningless?"

Riou walked towards Tengaar and Hix. "That was a pretty mean trick to play," he chided.

Tengaar's smile faded. "Hix, I was doing this for your best interests," she pleaded.

Gengen looked sharply at Cham. "What is going on here? Explain what happened."

Cham walked out between the lanterns and laughed softly, trying to calm Gengen down. "The founder of Warrior's Village, the Holy Warrior Klift the Crusader, was a great friend of kobolds. However, in this particular village, he is more than that. He is something of a legend here, for he helped us in a time of distress long ago. When I learned that those two youngsters were from there, I knew I had to help the young lady."

Hix finally pulled out of his embrace, turning fully towards Cham. "But what about the Blue Stone of Purity, the Green Bell of Knowledge, and the Red Flower of Sacrifice? Don't they mean anything?"

"Yes!" Gengen barked. "The Unicorn will appear if you bring those three things to the Unicorn's Meadow."

Cham laughed again. "Those items were bought in the village. I had my men place them early this morning, before you were awake." Gengen looked appalled. "I am sorry to have deceived you that way. Nobody's even talked about the Test of the Unicorn since I was a pup."

"But, the Unicorn," Gengen sputtered. "It is real. I know it."

Cham placed a comforting hand on Gengen's shoulder. "Your faith is always amazing, warrior Gengen, but now it is time to listen to reason. No one from my village has ever seen the Unicorn. I've looked in the records; no one for many generations has even claimed to see the Unicorn. It's simply an old, old fairy tale."

"You should not dismiss me so lightly, oh Chief of the Kobolds," a deep, rumbling voice commanded.

Cham opened his mouth to exclaim something, but a sharp, cold wind drove through the meadow, blowing his words away. It ripped the lanterns off their stands, flinging them wildly towards the far edge of the field. There, clearly visible in the night, was a white unicorn. He was larger than the largest horse, taller at the shoulder than Viktor's head, but sleek like a Kanakan Stallion. The horn that protruded from his forehead was nearly two feet long. The paper lanterns circled around the unicorn like a ring of fire, then flew out into the night and disappeared over the trees.

Hix shouted excitedly, oblivious to the sudden look of terror of Tengaar's face. Cham's legs gave out, and the elder fell to his knees and hands. This was too much for the remaining kobolds from Kobold Village, who turned and scattered for the safety of the nearby trees. The unicorn slowly walked in the direction of the tree in the center of his meadow, casually looking at the people who remained.

Gengen moved to protect the chief, drawing his sword as the unicorn drew near. "Don't hurt him!" he begged. Viktor and Flik unsheathed their swords and Riou protectively moved Nanami around behind him.

The unicorn craned his neck around to bring his head, and horn, close to Gengen, sniffing at the kobold in the manner of a horse. The laughter that followed was deep, but oddly soothing. "Fear not, stalwart Gengen, for I have no quarrel with the Chief of Kobold Village. It is simply that I haven't seen one in so many years. I'd forgotten what they looked like." He snorted. "My business this night is not with your chief, but with the one who called me."

The unicorn swung his head back in the other direction, slowly walking towards Tengaar and Hix. Flik looked at Viktor and they nodded, following the unicorn carefully. Flik could sense that the unicorn would make a formidable adversary, perhaps even against all of them together.

Stopping before the two from Warrior's Village, the unicorn sniffed at each of them, first Hix and then Tengaar. She grabbed Hix's hand, refusing to look the unicorn in the eye. Hix remained still, awestruck by the presence of the unicorn.

"Are you the 'Pure-Hearted Maiden'?" the unicorn demanded.

Tengaar shrieked as the unicorn brought his head lower to bump her forehead with his nose. She grabbed Hix by his shoulders, shifting behind him. "Why should that matter?" she asked weakly.

"As is stated in the ancient covenant: 'Only the Maiden may ride the Unicorn. She guides him for the Warrior in the cause of righteousness. And when the conflict is over, the Maiden is bound to the Unicorn for the rest of her days.'"

"What?" shouted Hix, at the same moment as Tengaar cried, "Why?"

"I am the Father of all unicorns. They are all of my siring. Do not fear, 'Maiden,' when the time comes, you will understand me better, and my magic shall give you a form more suited for the purpose."

"You can't!" Hix's sword screamed out of its sheath. "Tengaar is-"

Viktor and Flik were already sprinting, but they were too far back.

"Will you defy me?" the unicorn boomed, rearing onto his hind legs. With a blinding flash and an overpowering roar, a bolt of lightning streaked out of the cloudless sky, striking him squarely on his horn. In the brightness, Flik felt the lightning rune spasm in his hand, forcing him to drop his sword.

When he could see again, he found that a circle of snapping blue flames blocked their way to the tree Tengaar and Hix were under. The unicorn had settled down on all four hoofs again. Viktor glanced back at Flik, the question of whether they ought to risk the flames clear in his eyes. Flik took another look at the fire and shook his head. He thought back to Hix's actions during the day. This battle was Hix's alone. All Flik and Viktor could do was have faith that Hix was strong enough.

Beyond the flames, Hix had kept his feet, bravely holding his sword out in front with both his hands. "Can you stop me?" the unicorn asked, advancing on the pair.

Tengaar fell backwards, her mouth open, but no sound coming out. Her back bumped up against the trunk of the tree and she sank to the ground. Hix reflexively took a step backwards, even as the unicorn's horn began to descend towards his head.

"Hix!" Tengaar shrieked, finding her voice at last.

"I can't defeat you," Hix spoke calmly. "I won't ever be a true warrior." Blue firelight rippled off the horn. Hix firmed his hands on his sword. "But…but, I promised to protect Tengaar." The blade moved, rising towards the unicorn. "I swore it!" Hix cried, steel blade and white horn flashing by each other. "I swore it on this sword!"

Another wave of bright light filled the meadow, forcing Flik to turn his head. When that abated, Tengaar and Hix were alone under the tree, both the blue flames and the unicorn having vanished. Flik ran over to them. Hix was inspecting a single point of blood that had welled on his forehead. Viktor, Riou, and Nanami came up beside Hix. Behind them, Gengen was helping Cham up.

Tengaar got shakily to her feet, carefully approaching Hix with wide eyes. "Is that it?"

"Noble Warrior!" the unicorn's voice acknowledged. "Pure-Hearted Maiden!" Tengaar flinched visibly. "You have overcome the Test of the Unicorn. I bid you good fortune in your life together."

There was a momentary pause, as the presence of the unicorn seemed to shift. "You, who bear part of the Rune of the Beginning, know that I am not disinterested in your plight. Your actions shall write a part of the history of this land, and I have been asked to aid you in this struggle. When the time is right, I will lend you my assistance. Go; return to your duties, for your enemies have not remained still. Be vigilant for the sake of those who love you." Then the presence was gone, leaving the meadow quiet.

"Hix!" Tengaar cried, and said nothing more as she kissed him passionately.

Cham sniffed the air uncertainly as he leaned on Gengen. "That was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. I did not think the Unicorn was actually real."

It was Nanami who finally grasped the totality of the situation. "Does that mean that Hix is a real warrior now?"

Tengaar broke the kiss and gazed into Hix's face. "That's right! The Unicorn named you as a True Warrior."

Hix, the blood on his forehead smudged a bit, sighed happily. "That means it's over, right? We can finally go back to Warrior's Village."

Flik felt a momentary pang of something. Envy? Jealousy? He shook his head, telling himself that he'd given up those traditions long ago. It meant nothing that Hix had fulfilled his manhood journey before he had. Nothing at all.

Meanwhile, Tengaar was frowning. "What are you saying, Hix? We have to help Sir Riou out, along with Viktor and Flik. They've helped us so much and we have to repay the debt."

"Oh," Hix muttered.

Tengaar was already walking towards Riou. "We'd like to help you, Lord Riou, if you'll let us."

"Of course." Riou smiled.

Clapping her hands merrily, Tengaar looked back at Hix. "You, too. We both need to swear it. She grabbed his hand and pulled him over in front of Riou. "Lord Riou, I, Tengaar, and the Warrior Hix" -she seemed to relish saying that- "swear to aid the New State Army in the name of Warrior's Village."

Hix shrugged. "I'm honored to help out, Lord Riou."

And then Tengaar yawned. "Well, this has been quite the adventure, hasn't it? Let's go back to the village and get some sleep."


	36. Chapter 36 Teacher Flik

**Chapter 36 – Teacher Flik**

Flik had been away from Dunan Castle several times in the short existence of the New State Army. Each time, returning to the headquarters brought a host of interesting surprises. There were decidedly more ships in the harbor, and construction farther up the beach suggested that Shu was planning the beginnings of a navy, too. Moreover, a Zexen weapons merchant had set up shop, promising a steady supply of arms from Tinto and cities to the west as soon as the bridge over the Granias River was fully repaired.

However, the biggest surprise was coming home to see Leona gleefully sinking her cooking implements into the lake. The reason for this became clear the following morning, when Viktor woke Flik by pounding on his door and shouting that they'd been invited to the grand opening of "Hai Yo's Army Cafeteria and Refectory." Flik thought the name could use some work.

They weren't the only ones invited. The restaurant, which had previously been a corridor and some closed up rooms, was packed with people. The early ones had managed to get chairs around the newly placed tables, while the later guests had to make do with standing. Viktor and Flik were in this latter group.

The food was excellent. Flik found himself sampling Harmonian lobster with sweet sauce in one bite and thin slices of Zexen deer smothered in hot sauce the next. There were a variety of fruits and vegetables, many out of season, which hinted at the chef's connections. There was even a sashimi dish from Falena.

Flik briefly met Hai Yo while in the middle of eating crackers covered in some sort of thick, gray paste. The cook was an affable man, dressed in a yellow tunic and a tall yellow hat. He was smiling happily, moving from person to person, his long and curled mustaches bobbing as he talked. Only a single lock of gray hair that peeked out from under his hat suggested that this man was older.

"Are you finding everything to your liking?" Hai Yo asked, balancing a wok full of noodles in one hand. Flik, unable to say anything, tried to nod and chew at the same time. "Remember to save room for the desserts. They're the very best part." With this admonition, the chef moved off to get another person's opinion.

Flik was reaching for another cracker when he was bumped from behind, causing one of the paste covered crackers to flip backwards onto his shirt. Looking around for the culprit, he caught the fleeting image of a small kobold wearing blue overalls and an orange shirt dashing through the crowd. There was a slingshot sticking out of his back pocket.

"Gabocha!" Gengen cried, running up beside Flik and pausing for a moment to pant heavily. "You're not allowed in here." Gengen growled in frustration, then looked up at Flik. "Commander, I was wondering if you've seen a little pup with blue overalls."

"Went that way." Flik pointed off towards the doors leading out to the outside area. "Who is he, Gengen?"

"One of my younger cousins," Gengen wheezed. "Gabocha. He lives in Two River, but it seems he got caught up in all the excitement about my exploits. He left his whole family behind in the city and managed to get here. Now I've got to look after him. He knows nothing of human ways!"

Actually, Gabocha seemed to be doing pretty well for himself. Flik saw that he'd run into Nanami, Pilika, and Millie, who were patting him on the head and scratching him behind his ears. He distinctly heard Nanami calling Gabocha "the cutest thing I've ever seen!" Moments later, Rina and Eilie joined the group around the young kobold.

Gengen's look was one of despair. "I've got to put a stop to this at once," he declared. "You have no idea what a young kobold puppy is like when he's all wound up. He'll run circles after his own tail for hours, there'll be no stopping him." He rolled up his sleeves, set his face, and grimly advanced towards the girls.

Viktor came up then, distracting Flik from the confrontation. He was holding what appeared to be a headless, twenty-pound fish between his hands, taking gigantic bites of the flesh and swallowing with gusto. "This is great stuff," he mumbled loudly.

"You should save some space for later," Flik chided.

His mouth momentarily clear, Viktor asked, "What this concept of 'saving some space?' It's not like I'm going to run out."

Flik was about to retort, but suddenly Zamza joined them. The chief magic instructor for the New State Army looked distinctly displeased. "Why are all these people here?"

Viktor had started eating again, so it was up to Flik to answer. "It's a restaurant. They come here to eat."

"But this is my place," Zamza whined.

Viktor snickered, choked on something, and started coughing loudly, bringing up food all over the unfortunate mage. "Sorry about that," he said.

"Haven't they assigned you a room yet?" Flik wondered. "I've had one for a little while, even if I haven't used it much yet."

"I don't understand," Zamza moaned. "Can't they see that I'm the most important member of this army? I'm falling behind in my work because I can't get a proper night's sleep. How am I supposed to mold my students into proper magic users if I'm too tired to conduct my classes?"

"It's probably a mess-up in the paperwork," Viktor commented. "I'm sure they'll get it straightened out sooner or later." Flik frowned though. As much as he'd wanted to simply ignore Zamza's problems, the fact that it might effect the training was serious. He resolved to ask Shu about it at a later date.

Meanwhile, those concerns were swept away as Hai Yo and his staff wheeled out several trolleys laden with sweets. There were hard candies, cakes, ice shaving in fruit sauce, and little bowls filled with chocolate pudding. The pudding was apparently called "Pilika Pudding" because the little girl loved the stuff. In his own opinion, Flik thought it wasn't bad, but there were other desserts he liked better.

He'd just started on his second bowl when one of Shu's messengers tapped him on the shoulder. "Commander Flik, Commander Viktor, a situation has come up requiring your presence in the great hall."

The party suddenly got a lot quieter. Looking around, Flik saw that Riou was leaving, walking after another messenger. Nanami and Pilika trailed after him quickly. Flik nodded and left the room, Viktor right behind him. He could not help but feel a sense of foreboding. A conversation was already underway as they walked towards the great hall.

"All you need is a little confidence, Apple," a young, cheerful female voice was saying. "Keep your back straight and swing your hips a little and the men will fall all over you." Flik realized that he recognized that girl's voice.

Apple replied uncertainly. "Y-you think? I'm not certain I could act that way."

Shu interrupted the discussion by asking, "You're sure it was the Highland Second Army?"

As Flik walked into the room, he squinted against the light from the west facing windows and tried to locate the people already there. Shu, Apple, and Fitcher were standing below the steps of the dais, conversing with a girl sitting on a barrel at the top of the steps. The girl's brown hair was done up in a high ponytail, and she wore a sleeveless green dress. The skirt on that dress was pleated and gave way well up her thigh. Over the dress she had on a top made of vertical stripes in yellow, brown, and red. She drummed her legs -they were covered by dark stockings- against the barrel. The motion caused the two little red bells she wore on her absurdly large, white collar to jingle in time. Flik only had to blink twice before he recognized her.

"I'm totally sure," Meg answered. "At least, I think I'm totally sure." Shu sighed, but Meg had noticed the new arrivals. She swung around the top of the barrel to greet them. "Viktor, Flik, long time no see. I didn't know you were up here."

Viktor shrugged. "Aren't you going to tell us that we're supposed to be dead?"

Meg frowned thoughtfully. "Are you really dead? Does that mean I'm talking to a pair of ghosts? Neat, that's the coolest thing I've heard of in a while." She studied them more closely. "You aren't dead, I can see you breathing."

And then the barrel that Meg was sitting on started thrashing about violently, causing her to topple off behind it. To Flik's amazement, the barrel sprouted a pair of wooden arms, a set of three wheels, two large painted eyes, and a metal mouth. More surprisingly, the barrel began to speak in a dry, uneven voice. "Miss Meg, that young man is Lord Riou, leader of the New State Army."

Meg popped back up, setting her elbows directly onto the barrel's…head. "Are you sure? I thought he'd be a little more manly."

Riou might've responded, but it was Nanami who rushed to his defense. "My brother's plenty manly," she said irately. "Maybe if you weren't such a shallow little tramp, you'd be able to see that."

Meg smirked, standing up to her full height. "At least I've got something to show off. No wonder you dress that way. If I looked like you, I'd hide everything too."

Nanami shrieked, "You take that back now, before I have to come up there and hurt you!"

"You shouldn't get so jealous," Meg bantered easily. "Anybody can see my natural advantages. Isn't that right Flik?" She gave him a winning smile.

Nanami turned her wrath on him. "If you even think for a moment that she looks better than I do, I'll claw your eyes out."

At this point, all Flik wanted to do was find the nearest corner and disappear into it. Luckily, Shu saved him, stepping between the two girls and sternly saying, "I believe this conversation is better suited for somewhere else, like the new baths. Anybody who has anything else to say on the matter will be escorted from the great hall by my men, understand?"

Meg was all happy smiles again. "I've made my point." Shu glanced sharply at her, causing her smile to falter. Nanami ground her teeth but subsided. Shu cleared his throat, turned to face Riou, and said, "I'm glad you've arrived."

"What's the news?" Viktor questioned.

Shu's tone was grave. "I regret to inform you that Greenhill was taken by the Kingdom of Highland."

"Not good news at all," Viktor muttered.

Flik felt ill, and he was sure -mostly sure- that it had nothing to do with overeating. "Greenhill is lost?" he finally managed to say. "How did they manage that? Highland was so focused on Two River."

"The force wasn't very large," Apple informed them. "We think it numbered only five thousand men."

A spasm of light-headedness coursed through Flik. As much as he wanted to collapse on the steps of the dais, he kept his feet. "You can't be serious!" Viktor exclaimed loudly. "Five thousand men, is that confirmed?"

Shu looked at Fitcher, who spoke. "My people in Greenhill province are all as amazed as you are, but this girl," he pointed at Meg, "was at the border when the Highland Army crossed in."

Meg drummed her feet against the barrel. "They were completely rude, too. Told me I couldn't go to Greenhill until their operation was over, then they locked me up in a cell. Too bad they didn't realize I had my Gadget with me."

"A few iron bars are nothing to me," the barrel replied proudly.

Viktor continued his questioning of Shu. "But Greenhill has at least seven thousand soldiers. You're telling me that they were defeated?"

Shu shook his head. "We have no confirmation of their tactics yet, and I don't care to speculate. However, we have learned a few things. First, the assault was carried out by elements of the Highland Second Army."

Viktor interrupted again. "Solon Jhee's unit? I don't think that's possible. I mean, how could that general pull off a such a brilliant maneuver?"

"It's very possible," Shu replied. "But it's no longer Solon Jhee's unit. He was executed by Luca Blight because of his defeat here and the subsequent loss of all of South Window province."

Flik finally found his voice. "An execution? That's awfully harsh."

"From Luca Blight's standpoint, it is a wise move," Shu answered. He read the shocked looks on everybody's faces, and smiled just a little. "By exercising his authority as supreme commander, the Prince has removed a general appointed by his father, Agares, and replaced him with someone loyal to himself. The Highland Army is slowly being turned into a personal instrument of the Prince's will."

"Do we know the name of this new general?" Viktor asked.

"None of my sources seemed to know," Fitcher responded.

"The name does not matter," Shu said tersely. "What matters is that this commander has succeeded in an unexpected way. Indeed, he has thrown off all of my plans for meeting Highland on a united front from South Window to Matilda. We cannot take him lightly."

Viktor growled fiercely. "Then now is the time to draw up some plans of attack. We've got to retake Greenhill."

"No," Shu said decisively. "Even with the addition of forces from Two River, we do not have the men to march into Greenhill, protect the army's rear from Muse, and dislodge the Highland Army from the city. Furthermore, such a move would expose Dunan Castle dangerously. We are not so secure here that I don't have to worry about a sudden attack from the lake."

"Are you telling us to give up?" Flik asked testily. "If all we can do is hide here while Highland slowly gobbles up parts of Jowston, then we're going to lose the war."

"I am a realist, Flik. We must accept situations as they are, not as we wish them to be. Still, I did not say we should do nothing. We have learned that despite the speed of Highland's victory, they were not able to secure the acting mayor, Teresa Wisemail. Our best option would be to send a delegation to meet with her and spirit her away to safety."

"Is that really going to help us?" Viktor questioned. "Seems like a long shot, if you ask me."

"Perhaps, but the rewards will be substantial if we succeed. As things stand now, Highland troops control the city of Greenhill, but none of the surrounding countryside. I am certain that they intended to use Lady Teresa's authority to help pacify the whole province. If we can get her to safety, then the people of the province will rally to our cause. If Highland captures her, it will only help them tighten their control."

Flik scratched his scalp. "You've really thought this through. That's impressive. Do you have a plan to get her out?"

Shu turned to Riou and spoke. "Greenhill is famous for its college, called the New Leaf Academy. Nobles and wealthy families from many countries send their children to the school to study. I suspect that won't change even if the town is under Highland occupation. Thus, Lord Riou and a small team should be able to infiltrate the city, pose as students, find Teresa, and get her out.

Riou, for once, looked nervous. "You want me to pretend to be a student? I'm not sure I could pull that off. It's not like I've had a lot of formal education to begin with."

"I don't believe you'd be there for more than a week at the most," Shu consoled him. "That wouldn't be enough time for you to finish their orientation program. Besides, you gauge your intelligence far too modestly, if I may offer an opinion."

"Should Riou really be the one to go?" Viktor asked. "Sending him into the middle of any occupied city sounds very risky."

"He should go as part of a group," Shu replied. "But he has to go. Lady Teresa is known to be somewhat insecure about her position as acting mayor. Sending Riou to meet her is a sign of our respect for her, as well as a powerful showing of our commitment to helping her city. We'll need her unflinching support."

"I'm going!" Nanami shouted. "I've always wanted to go to a real school." Pilika rushed excitedly over to Nanami's side. "Pilika wants to go, too."

Meg casually stepped around in front of her barrel- she had called it Gadget, Flik remembered. "I was going there to begin with, so I'll come along. There's a book I want to read on Sindar gears by Babbage of Estrise in the library of New Leaf Academy."

Nanami frowned, but her mood quickly brightened. "We should have some others join us too!"

Shu sent messengers to summon the school-age members of Riou's entourage. In half an hour, a motley group of eight boys -though not all of them were human- and four girls had joined the others in the great hall. Shu calmly explained the mission and waited for a few minutes while for the excited conversation to die down. Then came the winnowing.

Gengen, Gabocha, and Chaco were immediately dismissed, much to their disappointment. Shu calmly explained that kobolds and winghordes almost never went to New Leaf, and that they would be too conspicuous. Bolgan was similarly excused, and Riou had to tell him that "it isn't because we don't think you're smart enough," before the large youth finally accepted the judgement.

Other candidates refused for their own reasons. Rina waved her hand dismissively and said she wasn't interested. Hix, much as Riou had done earlier, stated that he wasn't confident in his intellectual abilities. Tengaar stayed behind to be around Hix. Kinnison answered that he was uncomfortable being enclosed by walls with lots of people around. Templeton demurred, wishing not to be drawn away from his maps.

Eilie and Millie agreed to come and, joining Nanami, they made a perfect triangle of giggly potential schoolgirls.

Fitcher frowned at Riou standing by himself. "We'll need at least one more boy. They have the students sleep two to a room, and if Riou's going to be trying to meet Teresa, he'll need someone he can trust with him.

All of the eyes in the room turned to Luc, who'd been silently brooding in the corner during the earlier conversations. Registering the attention on him, he sneered and said, "Surely you don't expect that I, Lady Leknaat's great apprentice, would wish to go to a school."

Riou crossed the room to stand before the recalcitrant wind mage. Luc seemed discomforted by Riou's approach, looking out of the windows instead of meeting his eyes. "You always look so bored standing in front of the Tablet of Stars all day. You hardly ever talk to anybody. Come with us. You could talk with us, maybe make some friends."

"I don't need any friends," Luc responded, but his voice lacked the fine edge of his usual conceit.

"Maybe we can help you find the freedom you're looking for," Riou shot back. "Come along. It's got to be better than sitting around all day doing nothing."

"Are you ordering me to join you?"

Riou shook his head. "No, I'm only asking. If you refuse, we'll just do the plan as well as we are able."

Luc finally looked him right in the eyes. "Do you enjoy your power; the ability to break people's fates to your will?" Without waiting for Riou's answer, Luc started walking past him. "I guess I'll play this game, if only to see how you use your rune."

Shu appraised the group of would-be students. "Excellent. I believe only one further addition is needed. Flik, I'd like you to go to Greenhill with Lord Riou."

Flik, who'd bemusedly watched the selection process, now started with surprise. "How would I help things?"

In a completely serious voice, Shu answered, "Your role will be that of bodyguard and, technically at least, their adult supervision."

Warning bells clanged between Flik's ears. "You want me to supervise…them?"

Suddenly Nanami and Pilika were skipping in circles around him, Nanami happily shouting, "Teacher Flik! Teacher Flik!" Meg and Millie found this delightfully funny, laughing out loud. Eilie more discretely hid her smile behind her hand.

Flik put up his hands. "I'm not anybody's teacher, so stop calling me that. Besides, Riou is the leader, whatever our roles."

Luc sneered openly. "That's good, because I certainly wouldn't take commands from you."

Taking a few calming breaths, Flik ignored the wind mage and turned back to Shu. "How about getting into the academy? I don't think you want us to walk up there and use our real names."

"Indeed. Fitcher and I have worked out the details." Shu glanced over at his new assistant. "Fitcher, will you fill them in?"

Fitcher looked nervously around the room. "I suppose I can. The cover story is that Riou will be the son of Lord De Beers, a Falenan expatriate now living in Kanakan. The family was on the losing end of the Godwin uprising ten years ago. I suppose Nanami can be his daughter. Flik, you will be their family appointed bodyguard. The rest of the group doesn't really need any cover, since none of them are particularly well known."

"Does that mean we get to pick new names?" Nanami asked.

"I've already selected some serviceable names in the Falenan style," Fitcher assured them. "Nanami, you will go as Nymalia. Riou, your new name is Reen. Flik, for you I think-"

"Bluto," Viktor interrupted.

"Wait, I'm not going under that name," Flik pleaded.

"Sounds good to me," Shu said. "Especially if we want to revive that old ex-gladiator idea."

Flik sputtered through the beginning of an argument, but it was Fitcher who got out the next coherent sentence. "I guess that will work. It's not as though it changes much." He looked uneasily in Flik's direction before he continued. "I'll have to ask that Riou, Nanami, and Flik change their clothes, too."

Irrational anger shot through Flik. "I'm not going to do that!"

"Calm down, Flik," Shu chided. "It can't be helped. Too many people recognize your blue clothing on sight. You won't be doing Riou any good if somebody names you as Flik of the Blue Thunder in front of a couple of Highland soldiers."

"Blue Lightning," Flik corrected. However, he couldn't muster any arguments against Shu's reasoning. Fitcher had men bring in the clothing. How he'd managed to find Falenan clothing Flik didn't ask. Instead, Flik carried the garments back to his room to dress.

He set the garments down on his bed, pulled off his blue cape, and wondered if he ought to have asked for instructions. The main piece seemed clear enough, it was a long, rose -Flik steadfastly refused to think of it as pink- dress robe. Spread out on his bed, it was clearly wide enough to fit two of him easily. He pondered over whether it was meant to be worn with pants and an undershirt, and decided to err on the side of decency.

He wrapped the garment around him, struggling with all the excess fabric and the wide sleeves. Trying to keep the robe in place, Flik reached for the next item on the bed, a long, black sash. He wound it around his midsection, tightening the robe in place, and found that he had more than ten feet of surplus fabric. Confused, he kept spiraling it around his waist until he'd completed more than a couple circuits of his body. Finally tying the ends together in front, he found it difficult to bend over and pick up the last articles of clothing.

The black and gold gauntlets were easy enough to figure out, until he tried to put them on over his robe. There was too much cloth for that, so Flik decided that they had to go on under. There was also a black mantle with gold trim -at least he assumed it was a mantle- with a rose half-cape that had little golden stars on it hanging down from the back. The collars of the mantle were uncomfortably high, the front catching him on the chin, but Flik got it in place. Last of all, he tied on the blue headband that he wore over his forehead, if only to keep a little piece of his old identity.

He tried not to show too much discomfort as he strode back to the great hall. Even before entering, he could hear peals of laughter.

"That dress is so darling," Meg mock cooed. "You look positively adorable."

"Get me something else, Fitcher," Nanami demanded. "I'm not going to Greenhill in this. How am I supposed to fight?"

Flik walked in to see what "this" was. I was a short walking dress in hunter green with a high collar and long sleeves, both of which ended in white frills. It showed much more of her legs than she, or Flik, was used to.

"Um…in general, the ladies of the Falenan upper class tend not to," Fitcher answered.

Then people started noticing Flik. Viktor, in deference to his friend, gamely tried to cover a snort with his hand, but it was no use. Seconds later, the big man was guffawing loudly, doubled over.

"What is that?" Millie exclaimed between giggles.

Fitcher rolled his eyes. "You've got that all wrong, Flik. First off, the collar should go over your shoulders, so the cape is on the left side." He came over, grabbed the piece Flik had assumed was a mantle, and wrenched it around so the starry half-cape was in its proper position. Next he looked critically at the black sash. "Proper Falenans tie this off in a wide bow in the back."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No." Fitcher started undoing the knot and unwinding the sash. After a couple of minutes, the sash was re-tied in a bow with two huge loops and two tails that nearly dragged on the floor.

"Do proper Falenan gentlemen fight in this arrangement?"

"Of course. Why, the Queen's Knights do so all the time."

"I see," Flik said dryly. "What happens when somebody grabs part of the bow?"

Fitcher's answer was cut off as Riou entered the room. Riou's new attire included a pair of tight, bright white pants, a long maroon button down jacket, and a half-cape in navy blue with a white sawn on it. Flik noticed that Riou was still wearing his circlet.

Eilie rushed over to him. "It's so cute," she gushed.

"I think he looks like a dork," Meg commented. "But it's not his fault. Judging by the clothing, Falenans must be completely clueless about good taste."

Forestalling any biting comeback from Nanami, Shu said, "I believe we are ready to begin. You will leave this afternoon. Fitcher will go ahead of you to make arrangements. Flik, I wish you all the best of luck."

Flik sighed. The way Nanami and Meg were glaring at each other, he knew he was going to need it.


	37. Chapter 37 Rune Dreams

**Chapter 37 – Rune Dreams**

As the docks of Lakewest came into view once again, Flik wondered if he really ought to buy a residence here, given the number of times he'd been through the port lately. He wiped his brow with the edge of his wide, rose sleeve. The excess fabric was making him very sweaty. He hoped things would be better once the sun was down.

Riou was further forward on the boat, talking amiably with Eilie, Meg, and Millie. Nanami, having not made her peace with Meg, stood to one side, trying to strike up a conversation with Luc, who ignored her. Fitcher was also on board, looking nervously about, as if he expected some creature to leap up out of the lake and start attacking. One other traveler was on the boat too. Clive, the quiet gunner, had come along to escort Fitcher to Greenhill. After that, he planned to head north for Forest Village, on business of his own.

Flik asked him to elaborate, but all Clive said was, "She's there." Then he shook his head violently, walked to the stern of the boat, and sat down to check his weapon.

When they arrived at the docks, Fitcher and Clive rode off, wanting to get to Greenhill as quickly as they could. Flik, exercising his role as "leader," decided to spend the night at an inn. The group caused considerably less stir this time, and no one seemed to recognize Riou for who he was. That didn't mean they weren't noticed. In fact, many of the dock workers seemed to be pointing at Flik and laughing. At the inn, he found that he had to pay more than anticipated, since Nanami stridently refused to share a room with Meg.

The following morning they rode west out of the town, Flik on his black mare, Nightstar. The day was hot, but not unbearable, which was good, because Nanami's mood was extremely sour. She had no experience riding sidesaddle and was not very happy with the unnatural position. Making her mood worse was the fact that Millie had defected over to Meg's side, and Eilie was too busy chatting with Riou to help Nanami out. Pilika, as silent as ever, was on a brown pony.

Eventually, Nanami and Pilika ended up riding with the group in the rear, which consisted of Flik and Luc. The three of them went along in silence for some time, Nanami throwing dark looks ahead, Luc sneering at everyone's antics, and Flik ignoring everything. After Nanami had grown bored with this, she tried to strike up a conversation.

"Flik, when do you think this war will be over?" she asked quietly.

The question caught him off guard. He looked over at her, trying to gauge her reasons for asking. Her face did not give him any hints, except that she was clearly not happy the way she normally was. He worked his response over in his head a couple of times and finally answered, "I'm not really sure I know. There are a number of things that have to fall into place before we can begin to challenge Highland with anything like equal numbers. However, what we're doing today will bring the end closer."

Nanami frowned. "I'm just worried that the war will go on forever. What if it does? I don't want Riou to have to fight day after day."

"Well, neither do I. I want the fighting to end as much as you do, and that's why I'm doing everything in my power to help your brother."

"You could always run away, you and your brother," Luc said mockingly. "Then you would be free from all of those concerns."

"Luc! Don't say such things," Flik barked menacingly. The wind mage shrugged and trotted his horse in the direction of Meg and Millie. Or rather, he tried to, but Luc was not a terribly good rider, and his horse decided to walk over to the side of the road and sniff at some flowers. As the rest of the party continued on, Luc sat in his saddle and flailed with his legs, attempting to make his horse move. Eventually his horse started after the others of its own accord.

Nanami giggled at this, and Flik, sensing that her mood was better, took the opportunity to respond to Luc's challenge. "You shouldn't take him seriously, Nanami. I know the obligations seem daunting now, but running away would only be selfish. Not only that, but it wouldn't bring peace, either. If anything, it would only make more people suffer, because Highland would see our weakness and become emboldened."

Nanami's smile wavered, but held. "I know, I just don't want to see Riou hurt. I worry that he doesn't understand what fighting a war means." She paused for a moment, considering her words. "When Riou and Jowy were in the Unicorn Brigade, I did a some work at the clinic in Kyaro. I never saw too many soldiers, but there were some who were missing parts of arms and legs. And there were some who were broken in spirit. I don't want my brother to end up like that."

Flik carefully kept his emotions off his face. He knew there'd been more than a few times where he'd almost lost limbs. He looked up at Riou, speaking happily with Eilie. Then he looked back at Nanami. "I can't say what's going to happen. All I can tell you is that I will do everything that I can to make sure that your brother gets through this okay. As I'm sure that you will, too."

Nanami looked away from him. "Yes, but what if it's not enough?"

Flik did not have an answer for that, and Nanami did not continue the discussion. They rode along in silence some more before she decided to speak to him again. This time they talked about different styles of training, comparing Master Genkaku to the elders of Warrior's Village. He kept his end of the conversation light, telling her a number of humorous stories about his failings at specific elements in his training.

He was rewarded by her laughter and for the first time in the trip, Nanami seemed to be in a good mood, smiling fully. When she paused for a moment to complain about the heat, Flik regaled her with a story from when he was six, about the year with no summer. Nanami was incredulous, but he recalled from his memory the one winter in his life where more than a foot of snow had fallen in Warrior's Village, and the following summer had been exceptionally cool.

At some point, Flik noticed that Meg and Millie surreptitiously glancing back at him and Nanami. Nanami must've seen them too, for her answering grin was practically triumphant. Flik tried not to sigh. He did not want to be part of a group of girls' power plays. Meg eased her horse back towards Flik, coming up on his other side. She and Nanami smiled frostily at each other across Flik's line of sight.

The conversation continued in bits and starts and Flik found that he had to carefully balance how much attention he paid to each girl. Luckily, Millie also joined in, and she served as a neutral ground through which Nanami and Meg could speak. Thus, as the day wore on, this strange group approached the walls of Two River. Flik and Eilie were out front. Then Meg's barrel, Gadget, rolled along with Bonaparte resting on top. Next came Flik and the four girls. Finally, Luc brought up the rear. He had long ago given up on riding his horse and was simply leading it along on foot.

Once inside the city, Riou directed Flik towards an inn that, ironically enough, shared the same name as the academy in Greenhill. There was a moment of confusion as they stood before the proprietor and Flik waited for Riou to settle accounts. The innkeeper scratched his bald head in a puzzled manner and prompted, "How may I help you sir? You appear to have come from far away."

Flik suddenly remembered his part in this operation. "Uh-yes, help. Um, we're on our way to Greenhill, looking for rooms to spend the night."

Now that the conversation was proceeding down a normal avenue, the innkeeper became more solicitous. "Indeed. How many rooms shall I put you down for, mister…uh, you haven't given me your name yet."

"Fl-" Flik bit down on his own name, making a sort of strangled noise, before finally saying, "Bluto…yes, I'm Bluto, ex-gladiator of Falena. We'll need two," he saw Nanami pointedly put up three fingers, "no, three rooms for the night."

"You'll want stabling for your horses too, and meals, yes?"

Why was he having so much trouble with this? Flik shook his head and answered, "Yes, of course."

The innkeeper looked completely baffled by the competing signals. Riou stepped up beside Flik and said, "You must forgive my bodyguard. He's rather unused to northern lands. We'll take food for us and stables for the horses."

Bowing, the innkeeper replied, "Very good, young master. I'll see to that right away. If you will just seat yourselves in the private dinning room, we'll bring something to eat right out."

The proprietor slipped away to see to their horses, but a waitress led them to the private room. As they were walking, Luc came up beside Flik and said under his breath, "Nice going, mister bodyguard. Real smooth."

Flik ignored him. He was listening to the whispered discussion Riou was having with Nanami. "Can't you at least try to get along? I don't understand what happened between you and Meg, but she seems nice enough. We're all going to have to work together in Greenhill."

"She insulted you and you say she's 'nice enough'?" Nanami retorted softly. "You're obviously blinded by all that leg she's showing off. Have it your way, then." She stormed past her brother in a huff, oblivious to how much she was showing off in her green dress. Riou looked dumbfounded by the accusation.

Dinner was roasted lamb in gravy, mint jelly, green beans, and honey glazed potatoes. The food was so good that nobody said anything for a while. Eventually, Nanami asked, "How are we going to look for Lady Teresa if we have to take classes? Won't it seem suspicious if all we do is hang around the campus looking around?"

Luc shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not taking any classes," he announced. "I suppose I'll have plenty of time to look."

Millie glared at him. "You've got to take some classes! Do you want to blow our cover?"

"Oh joy," Luc said. "What, you think it won't blow our cover when I know more about rune sorcery than my teacher?"

Millie stuck out her tongue at Luc. Riou took the moment to jump into the conversation. "We'll have to cover as much ground as we can. Perhaps we can set up our classes in a staggered sequence so that somebody is always free to be looking."

"I can check the library," Meg declared. "I'll be looking for that book, anyway."

"I'm not sure we want to be sneaking around alone," Eilie said. "What if somebody catches us at it? What if there are Highland soldiers who are also looking?"

"I don't think the soldiers are going to go around accosting students," Riou answered. "But we ought to be discreet. Also, Flik, I think we're going to have to rely on you a lot. You'll have more free time than the rest of us, and you'll be at liberty to go into the town. Of course, once the weekend rolls around, we can spend all day looking."

"I agree," Flik replied. At that moment, he heard a faint scraping against the door. The talking came to an abrupt halt. Riou glanced at Flik for advice, and Flik mouthed, "Keep talking." Then he quietly got out of his chair, pulling his sword free.

"Meg, do you know what kind of classes they offer?" Riou asked, trying to sound natural.

"Um, yeah." Meg eyed the door and answered, "They teach just about everything: history, law, mathematics, rune magic, music, art, literature, even weapon maintenance. About the only thing they don't do is military strategy."

Stepping softly, Flik worked his way up to the door. Checking the grip of his sword in his right hand, he carefully placed the left on the knob.

"That sounds cool," Nanami answered.

"Sounds boring," Luc added.

Flik swung the door open, keeping the point of his sword forward and high. He was ready for anything from the hallway.

Well, he was ready for almost anything. He'd expected to find someone nearly his own height and so had to look slightly down at the flash of orange coming at him. It was a slender teenage boy…no, she was almost certainly a girl…who responded to the drawn weapon by slamming her fist, and wooden wrist guard, right into his stomach.

He could hear his gasp escaping his mouth and fought to keep a grip on his sword. The girl did not stop her attacks, her orange fighting robe swirling to reveal brown shorts as she kicked a leg with a foot guard at him. Flik had his sword ready this time, wood and steel clapping together. For a moment, he thought he had the advantage. Then she adroitly lunged forward on one leg, sending the other, which he'd assumed was safely pinned against his sword, up and past the blade, right into the side of his jaw.

Lights exploded in his vision as he fell backwards. All he could think was,_ some bodyguard I turned out to be._ The back of his head hit something wooden and unyielding, the floor. Before he could properly see again, he felt Riou running to aid him. He heard the first impact, wood against wood, as Riou used his tonfar. Flik shook out his head, trying to follow the fight. Both Riou and the girl seemed evenly matched, each lunging back and forth from offense to defense.

Suddenly, in the middle of a series of parries, the girl stopped and said, "You're pretty strong! Almost as strong as master."

As if that was a signal, Riou also lowered his guard. "Why were you listening at the door?"

Flik groaned and tried to get to his feet. Nanami and Meg jumped up from their seats to help him, one on each side.

"I heard you were going to Greenhill," the girl said, wiping sweat out of her short, messy brown hair. "I was going to ask if I could join you."

"Lovely way to ask for an invitation," Luc commented.

"Master Reen!" the innkeeper's voice called. "Is everything all right?" There was the sound of footsteps approaching. Riou gestured the girl into the room, and everyone took their spots at the table. Everyone, but Flik, who found the newcomer had taken his place. He leaned back against the wall and tried to clear his head. The footsteps stopped by the closed door and the person on the other side knocked loudly. "Master Reen." It was the innkeeper. He stuck his head in through the door to survey the room. "One of the guests heard some scuffling. Is everything okay in there."

"We're fine," Riou announced. "My bodyguard had an unexpected slip, but everything's okay." Flik colored in embarrassment, hearing Riou use his failure as the cover.

"As you say, young master." The innkeeper's footsteps retreated back down the hall.

Riou sighed. He almost sounded frustrated. "What else did you hear?" he asked the girl.

The girl put a finger to her chin. "Let's see. You were talking about classes and schedules and going into town on the weekends." Then she casually added. "Oh, you were also looking for Lady Teresa."

Flik tensed, his hand reaching for his sword. It came up empty. The blade was still lying on the ground several feet away, where he'd dropped it when the girl had kicked him.

Luc shook his head. "Great, she knows everything. We can't let her leave."

"I don't want to leave," the girl answered. "I'm looking for my master, but I can also help you." She looked directly at Riou. "And you're very strong. It'll be fun hanging out with you."

As unobtrusively as possible, Flik walked over, picked up his sword, and re-sheathed it. From his vantage point, he could see that Nanami was not entirely pleased with the idea of another young girl interested in Riou.

"This is serious," Nanami said sharply. "We're trying to get Lady Teresa away from Highland. It could even be dangerous. You sure you want that?"

The girl drove her fist into her palm. "I'm no friend of Highland! I said I'd help you out, right? I've got to be more useful than that scrawny boy over there." Flik, much to his relief, saw that she was pointing at Luc.

Luc stood up to his full height. It wasn't very impressive. "I-I'm not scrawny!" he sputtered. "I'll have you know that I'm the number one apprentice of Lady Leknaat."

"If you're going to work with us, you'll have to follow my orders," Riou declared. "Or, if I'm not around, you'll have to listen to Bluto."

The girl glanced over at Flik, sizing him up. He felt his jaw twinge. "That's fine," the girl said cheerily. "My name's Wakaba, a student of Master Long Chan Chan's school of martial arts."

There was a quick round of introductions, and Flik noticed that Riou continued to hold to their cover story. When Riou mentioned Kanakan, Wakaba interrupted with, "I'm from Merseto. It's to the east. Have you every been there? There are lots of ruins nearby. Have you ever seen a kangacorn?" From there, the conversation rapidly turned to the merits of kangacorns versus horses.

After a time, Flik suggested that they should retire for the night, since he wanted an early start the following morning. Despite that wish, he did not sleep overly well. He knew it was useless to worry about searching for Lady Teresa before he arrived at Greenhill, but somehow he couldn't stop himself being anxious. While he lay awake, staring at the ceiling, he realized that he wasn't the only one who was restless. Riou shifted back and forth in his bed, not really awake, but not fully asleep either. Luc slept soundlessly, or if he was awake, he hid it well.

They left the following morning after a quick breakfast and a settling of accounts with the innkeeper. There was a short delay while they got a horse for Wakaba, and then Flik led them down the city streets, heading for the river. The southern section of Two River City, the human part, consisted of broad squares and long avenues with shops, residences, and alleys filling in the spaces all around. Luckily, the streets were only just beginning to get crowded, so the group made their way to the river in a little under an hour.

At the Lana River, Flik paid out more potch to hire a ferry to take them directly across, rather than try to wander through the warren that was the Winghorde section of the city. The Winghordes were latecomers to Two River, and their section had a very haphazard look. Small wooden buildings were jammed onto a series of islands in the middle of the river, all connected by wood walkways. Of course, the Winghordes could fly, so they didn't need to worry so much about whether or not it was difficult to walk along the planking.

There were many boats out on the water this morning, small river craft from Tinto and sluggish, broad-beamed trading vessels designed for the lake. The river crossing took about half and hour, and then they landed on the north shore of the Lana, in the kobold section of Two River. Flik found this part of the city to be much like Kobold Village, except on a larger scale. Small houses dominated, with trees growing all around them. The only difference Flik could detect was that these kobolds also had centralized training ground, a fenced field with numerous practice dummies. There were kobolds training on those dummies, preparing for war.

To his surprise, he saw that one of the participants was a tall, well-muscled man in bright yellow pants and a small blue vest. His brown hair was done up in a series of long rolls, which looked a little like sausage links to Flik. He had no idea why this human was training with kobolds and didn't have the time to go over and ask. The party rode on.

There was no definite end to the kobold section. The kobold houses simply petered out, replaced by more and more trees. Soon, Flik and the others were riding down a broad lane that cut through the middle of a forest. By the time the sun had climbed to noon and they stopped for lunch, the forest had opened up onto rolling plains. The day was shaping up to be hot again, with very few clouds in sight.

After lunch, they were on the road again. The girls, all six of them, were out in front, carrying on a vigorous discussion full of laughter. Nanami even seemed to be able to tolerate Meg today, though she still didn't speak directly to her. Flik, Riou, and Luc trailed behind and for a long time said little.

There wasn't much sign of human development on the land, but as the afternoon wore on and they traveled further north, the party began to pass more and more farms. Here the crops were well underway, and Flik could see people working out in the fields or tending to livestock. The road that they were on eventually came to an end, intersecting with an east-west highway. They turned west, heading for the distant forest that signaled the location of Greenhill. The area here was relatively built up with little villages every few miles.

Flik was looking at the pale thin sliver of the Scarlet Moon when Riou quietly asked Luc, "I've heard you have a True Rune. Is that correct?"

Flik glanced down in time to see Luc trying to compose his face. "I do. The True Rune of Wind," he answered.

Riou hesitated for half a minute before he spoke again. "Do you think your True Rune is ever trying to tell you something?"

Luc answered with a question of his own. "Why do you think your Rune is trying to tell you anything?"

"I'm not sure. I just keep getting these dreams, no, visions, and I don't know what they mean."

Curiosity suddenly got the better of Flik. "What do you see?"

"Cities and armies marching, scenes of devastation, of things falling apart. I saw Muse, but there was no one in it, and a huge golden wolf floated overhead. There was another city, one built into a mountainside, and our flags flew from the ramparts, but the army was in mourning."

"The wolf might mean the Beast Rune," Luc commented.

Riou nodded. "I saw the fort, too, back in East Muse. There was a battle going on in my vision. And…I saw us fighting near Dunan Castle, fighting desperately against Highland, against the White Wolves." Then Riou looked directly at Flik. "I've even seen you in my visions."

Reflexively, Flik placed a finger on his throat, right over his throbbing pulse. Immediately, he jerked his hand away. This was the second time he'd heard those particular words. "What did you see?" he asked with trepidation.

"I saw you and Viktor carrying me out of a castle. I have no idea where it was."

Flik shook his head, trying to steady himself. "I wouldn't spend too much time worrying about things you can't understand, Riou. You'll only fatigue yourself."

Riou looked unconvinced. "I know that, but I do want to understand. The Bright Shield Rune is trying to tell me something, it's trying to talk to me. If I could just figure it out, it might tell me what path to walk, what mistakes to avoid."

"Why do you think the rune is trying to tell you that?" Luc asked haughtily. "Why do you think the rune cares what you do?"

Riou stammered, working his mind hard for the response. "Well, I was told that the True Runes have wills, that they think. So doesn't it make sense that the images I see are some form of communication? That my Rune wants me to understand something and to act on it?"

Luc stared intently at Riou. "Yes, the True Runes have their own wills, but why do you think they care about you, or anyone? To what end do they exercise their wills? Perhaps the Bright Shield shows you these things simply to taunt you, to show you the inevitability of things."

Riou remained silent, brooding. It fell to Flik to ask, "What do you mean, 'the inevitability of things'?"

"The True Runes have their wills, they each struggle in their great balance, like some cosmic game. Where do you think we fit in that game?" Luc kept his eyes firmly on Riou. "We are pawns. Pieces the True Runes slide across the board for their own purposes, for their own amusements. They don't care about our suffering. If they really did, why don't they intervene and help us? Why don't they end all the senseless wars, all the dying, the cruelty and oppression that we face? They don't because it serves their game."

Riou's response was immediate, and calm. "It's not the runes that cause war, it's us. People kill each other. People are cruel and oppress each other. It's our choice to do those things, and that's what makes them vile. If we were only toys for the Runes, then none of those things would make us feel outrage. But it's more than that, Luc. It was my choice to bear the Bright Shield Rune. It called out to me and I accepted. Why would it show me anything if I was only a pawn?"

Now it was Luc's turn to pause. Finally, he said, "I am glad you had the illusion of choice, Riou. I never did. I have always had my Rune. My first memory is of being aware of it. There is not a minute of a day where I don't feel it tugging at me, pulling me onward. Once, when I was still in Harmonia, before Lady Leknaat took me out of that place, they told me that the True Rune was the only reason I exist."

"I can see why you crave freedom," Riou replied sadly.

Luc snorted. "Tell me, does your rune show me in its visions? What comfort does it offer for my future? What path should I follow?"

Riou slowly held up his right hand, eyes searching the Bright Shield. For a moment, he said nothing, but suddenly the Bright Shield Rune flashed, just a momentary pulse of light. He looked back at Luc. "I saw you, lying on the ground, resting against a girl's blue skirt. She held your head in her hands. There were ruins, collapsing all around you." He broke eye contact with the mage. "I'm sorry, that's all I could see."

Luc snorted again. "How typical. I ask for a path and all I get is an ending. A lot of good that does me."

"Heads up, guys!" Nanami shouted. "You're riding right past Fitcher!"  
Startled, Flik swept his head around, trying to make sense of his bearings. The sun was setting to the red west, falling through parallel lines of clouds. The forest that denoted Greenhill was much closer. More importantly, they were in the middle of a village, having ridden a few paces beyond the inn. And Fitcher was there, waving for them to join him.


	38. Chapter 38 First Sight

**Chapter 38 – First Sight**

The inn was a quiet, subdued place. Riou's party was clearly the largest group in the building. Fitcher led them over to the largest table, told the waitress to bring them several roasted chickens, and sat down to business.

"There's…one more of you than I was expecting," he stated.

"This is Wakaba," Nanami said. "She joined us in Two River City."

Riou leaned close to Fitcher, speaking softly, "We've told her the goal of this trip, nothing else."

Fitcher raised his eyebrows. "Is that right, Master _Reen_, Master _Bluto_?" Flik, understanding what Riou was warning Fitcher about, nodded his head. Fitcher saw the confirmation and continued, "Well then, let me tell you about things on my end." He produced a stack of forms. "These are your enrollment papers for the New Leaf Academy. I've already taken the liberty of filling them out for you. However, there are two concerns. First, you now have one more member than I have forms and second, the papers are all three years out of date. Luckily, the academy is desperate to show that things are running normally, so hopefully they'll overlook the details. Just tell them the war messed everything up."

He passed the papers over to Flik, who took them with a frown. "You know, uh, Fitcher, I'm…not really good at this sort of thing. Couldn't you bluff us past the guards?"

Nervousness broke out all over Fitcher's face, like a rash. "I don't think I can. A lot of people know me in Greenhill, and it would only take one wrong word to attract a lot of unwanted attention. Besides," he looked really worried now, "something bad went down during the siege. I've never seen the people of Greenhill so on edge. Nobody will say what it was, but even my oldest friends are cold to me. I'm having trouble getting anything out of anyone."

"You don't know anything about Lady, uh, what we came here to get?" Flik asked quietly. "What are we supposed to do once we're inside?"

"I'm working on it," Fitcher asserted. "I'll have to call in a lot of old favors, but I will get it done. Hold tight and keep to your cover story until I've got some definitive information. Then I'll get word to you."

The waitress brought over dinner, and that conversation ended. After finishing a drumstick, Fitcher excused himself, saying that he had to get back to Greenhill as quickly as possible. The conversation thereafter was light, with the girls happily discussing which classes they were most interested in.

Once again, Flik did not sleep well. Some time past midnight, a line of storms rolled in and there was a heavy downpour. As swiftly as they had arrived, the rains departed, leaving the night air surprisingly cool for late spring. This change in the weather persisted in the morning as they rode on towards Greenhill. Nanami declared that she liked the cooler temperature, but Flik thought it was just a touch uncomfortable.

It took them the rest of the morning to get to the gates of the city, riding west for a little while and later turning north. Greenhill was built on the southern slope of a heavily forested ridge, full of pines and oaks and maples. The city was walled, and those fortifications did not show any signs of damage from the siege. They were also manned by Highland soldiers.

A squad of blue-and-white clad infantrymen had set up a checkpoint in front of the gates. They were screening everyone who was trying to enter the city. At the moment, they were checking the papers of a group of Duck Clan merchants from the Grasslands. The ducks, with their signature fish shaped halberds, eyed the Highlanders warily, as if they had not expected the war to come this far west.

The ducks were allowed through, their wagons creaking as they passed under the gate. Flik and his charges approached, and he self-consciously worried that the soldiers were all staring at this rose robe. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Eilie frowning and Meg making a great show of checking the knife in her hand. He realized that it was quite possible the soldiers didn't even notice him. To forestall any trouble, he dismounted, gave his reins to Riou, and quickly confronted the Highlanders.

"We'd like to enter the city," Flik announced to the sergeant in command.

The sergeant, a weathered man with blond hair, looked him over. "By the commander's orders, those who cannot declare proper business in Greenhill shall not be permitted to enter."

Flik squelched the nervousness building in his stomach. Everything was going well, he told himself. "These children are here to enroll in the New Leaf Academy. Here are their papers." He showed -but did not hand over- the documents.

The sergeant regarded the papers with a critical stare. "You want to enroll now, in the middle of a war? Why don't you wait until things have settled down?"

Flik had thought out many scenarios for how this conversation might go; this was not one of them. Flustered, he cobbled together pieces of the excuses he'd thought about, hoping they formed a coherent sentence. "Uh, we got the papers three years ago, but, uh, there was this war in Toran and, um, we were delayed, but, uh, we've come all the way from Kanakan, and the young master doesn't want to wait any longer."

"Uh-huh. What about you? You look a little old to be a student and not scholarly enough to be a teacher." His eyes widened in disbelief. "Surely you're not…their father?" He chuckled. "You lucky dog! Your wife must be one happy woman, or a busy one."

One of the rankers chimed in. "That's right, sarge. He looks like a fruit, but he can really produce." This was met by chuckles and snorts and guffaws.

Flik thought he heard Millie tittering lightly. He couldn't possibly look old enough to be their father. Carefully making sure his hand didn't stray towards his sword, he answered, "Are you joking? I'm their bodyguard. Their parents hired me to look after them." He tried to keep the edge out of his voice, speaking as casually as he was able.

"Good thing, because I'd kill myself if you were my father," Luc added.

The sergeant stopped laughing long enough to say, "Everything seems to be in order. You may pass, but don't cause trouble, or we'll throw you right out." He waved them through.

As they advanced, one of the privates turned to Flik and said, "Not their father, eh? You're not too much older than most of them, maybe you've got your eyes on one of the girls? Maybe you've got more than your eyes. I know I would."

Flik worked hard to keep from blushing. He also didn't respond to the comment, instead saying, "Move along children, quickly, quickly!" Eilie, in particular, was throwing that soldier a venomous look.

Then they were through and into the city itself. Greenhill was a large city, if not so populous as Muse, South Window, or Two River. Shops and residences ran alongside cobbled streets. A nearby sign pointed the way to the New Leaf Academy, which sat further up the ridge.

"The first thing we should do is get you all signed up," Flik announced. Meg and Millie were already heading towards a vendor who was selling hard candy. "Let's go, you two. Don't get distracted," he said in a louder voice.

"I'm not going to get distracted," Nanami replied. "I'm not that kind of girl." She smiled brightly down at Flik.

"Come on, let's just get there," Flik said. He remounted and started down the main street.

It didn't take long for him to feel what Fitcher had been talking about. Although the candy vendor had seemed friendly enough, many of the other people were not. There was nothing overt, but he kept seeing people staring at them darkly, watching the group of new arrivals as it made its way up the street. Every so often, Flik had to resist the impulse to draw his sword. Whatever had happened during the fighting had left a deep emotional scar on these people.

There were not a lot of Highland soldiers present. In fact, Flik didn't see any until they were nearly to the school. Even then, he heard the soldier first, yelling loudly in outrage.

"What the hell was that about? Why'd you stomp my foot!"

"That's what you deserve!" a girl's voice shouted back. "You were staring at me with those perverted eyes."

The street that Flik was on opened up onto a large square that stood just before the school. There were a few people in the square, and everybody's attention was on the two people who were arguing. One was a Highland soldier, the other a girl with short, blond hair. Her red blazer and pleated gray skirt suggested that she was a student at the school.

The soldier closed one hand into a fist. "Go away, little girl. You keep this up and I won't be responsible for what happens, even if you are a child."

To Flik's amazement, the girl wasn't cowed. "You think you're such a big man? You think you can just march around like you own the place?" She took a step forward, a movement that was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. The soldier muttered a few incomprehensible words and, more alarmingly, his hand moved for his sword.

Riou's horse broke into a trot. "I'm going to go stop this."

"Wait, Ri-Reen!" Flik shouted. "Don't do anything rash. We need more information before we move."

Nanami laughed. "That's my brother. He wouldn't let anything happen to a lady if he could help it. And I'm not going to let anything happen either!" She trotted on after him.

"I think we should-" Flik began and then noticed that all the rest of the girls were following Nanami. "Hey, wait!"

"I don't think they're listening," Luc observed.

Flik squeezed Nightstar into a trot, approaching the confrontation just in time to hear the soldier yelling at Riou. "Who the hell are you? Get back, punk!"

"Grown men shouldn't harass girls!" Nanami shouted down from her horse. "You can't be forgiven."

"Harass? What are you talking about? She started this by stomping on my foot." The schoolgirl stuck out her tongue behind the soldier's back.

Nanami wasn't mollified. "Excuses. Reen, kick this guy's ass!"

Riou looked aghast at Nanami's language. The soldier looked as though he were about to explode. "What is this? Are you trying to make me mad? You want to fight, kid? Let's go!"

Flik took this moment to interpose Nightstar between Riou and the soldier. He didn't draw his sword, but kept his hand firmly on the hilt, so that the soldier could see he was ready. "Stop! If you want to fight, you should pick on someone your own size."

The soldier was still lathered up. "You think you can make a fool out of a Highland soldier? You'd better be prepared to back up your words."

Flik had Nightstar take a step forward. He knew he couldn't make the mare purposefully trample the soldier, but he could give that impression. It worked. Intimidated, the soldier jumped back. "Prepare myself?" Flik asked icily. He drew his sword, feeling a sort of calmness settle over him. In the back of his mind, he knew that he had "that look," as Viktor so liked to describe it. "You're the one who should be needs to prepare. Are you ready to forfeit your life over this?"

Flik knew he was being provocative, but he wanted to scare his opponent out of anything drastic. Still, should the soldier go for his blade, he was ready to cut him down. Luckily, the Highland soldier didn't draw his sword. His anger broke like a fever, and he glanced at the crowd. There wasn't another soldier in sight, just unfriendly faces all around. He shrugged sheepishly and said, "Fine. I let my temper cloud my good judgement." He glanced back at the schoolgirl. "I'll forget this little incident, but just this once." Maintaining a brave front, the soldier jogged quickly from the square.

Flik spared one moment to ascertain that the girl was unharmed. She had a sort of dazed look on her face, but appeared fine. Then he turned back to Riou and Nanami. "Reen, Nymalia, I'm very disappointed in you two. Did you stop to think what might have happened if you'd forced a fight?"

"You're the one who threatened to kill him," Nanami pointed out.

"Don't talk back!" Flik snapped. "I had to do that because you ordered Reen to attack in the first place. The last thing we need to do is start a riot. Think about what that would've meant for our plans."

"I'm sorry," Riou said. "I guess we got carried away."

Flik's temper subsided. "I understand. I just want you all to be careful. We can't go around taking too many unnecessary risks. We can't count on Shu or Viktor to come rescue us if we get in over our heads." He blew out his anger in a big breath. "Okay. Let's go, Riou, er, Reen, Nymalia. I want to get all of you signed up before dinner."

In a few moments, the group was underway again, riding their horses across the square and towards the school. "Why do all the Highland soldiers have one track minds?" Nanami asked bitterly.

Flik sighed. It wouldn't do to tell her that men, in general, tend to have one track minds. Instead, he answered, "We were unlucky today, that's all. Don't go provoking things with them and you'll be fine."

At the end of the square, the road continued, lined by pear trees, until it came to the metal lattice gates that were the entrance to the school. Beyond those gates, Flik could see several white stone buildings rising in the distance and the deeper forest beyond that.

A pair of guards- university officials, not Highlanders- stood at the gate. One of them strolled forward a little to meet the new arrivals. "You are here to enroll?"

Flik handed down the papers, hoping the man wouldn't notice that there were more students than forms. He didn't seem to. He returned the papers to Flik and said, "You will find stabling for your horses just inside and to the right of the main gates. Stable fees are fifty potch per horse per day. I think you will find that very reasonable. Afterwards, you should proceed to the administration building, the big one all the way in the back, and register the new students. More information will be provided there."

The gates were opened. Flik led the group through. Inside, the atmosphere was very different from that of the city. The buildings of the campus were surrounded by tree-lined walks, stone benches, and sparkling fountains. Students and teachers alike were out, strolling or gathered in small groups under the trees.

Millie smiled happily. "I like this place already!"

Eilie nodded. "It is very nice."

"Whatever," Luc commented.

The stables were spacious and well staffed. The stable hands swooped down, almost like birds of prey, to help the newcomers with their mounts. Even so, Flik delayed long enough to see that the horses were taken care of. Fifteen minutes later, he led the children back out of the stables, a small numbered chit in his left hand telling him where to locate Nightstar when she was needed.

As they walked back along the path, a deep bell sounded from somewhere on the campus. There seemed to be a movement among the students. Some got up and headed towards various buildings, and new students came from those buildings to lounge by the trees. Eventually Flik and the others got back to the main road through the school, which lead directly to the administration building in the back. It was a two-story building of white stone that extended back from the street towards the woods.

Inside, there was the distant hum of activity, but the foyer was quiet. There was a desk at the back wall of the room where two hallways started and a woman at it. She looked up from the book she was reading, adjusted her glasses, and smiled. "Welcome, children. Are you here for something?" Her manner was easygoing and friendly. Flik had to pause a moment to remember the cover story.

"Yeah, we're, uh, here to register. The children, that is, not me." He tried to keep his composure as he approached the desk. Someone, possibly Luc, sniggered.

The receptionist smiled. Her brown hair was up in a bun. She was wearing a light-blue jacket, and her tight, long skirt was a darker blue. "It's rather unusual to have students enrolling at the start of summer. Never mind, let's see your papers."

Flik handed them over. The woman studied them and frowned. "These forms are somewhat out of date, and, unless I've miscounted, you have one more child than form." She looked disapprovingly at him.

Despite the cool air, he started sweating. "Well, there was a war in Toran, and we were delayed in coming here, and we got an unexpected new companion."

She nodded, her frown waning, to Flik's relief. "I suppose that isn't unexpected, what with everything that's happened here recently. Except for the fact that you're missing one form, everything seems to be in order. Which one of you children is the one without papers?"

Wakaba jumped forward. "That would be me, ma'am! I'm very sorry."

The receptionist laughed. "Don't worry, all you'll need to do is fill out the proper forms, and we'll have you accommodated." She pulled out a pen and a couple of papers. After she handed them to Wakaba, the receptionist looked back at Flik. "She's very polite. These children, are they yours?"

Did she really think he looked old enough to be their father? "You can't be serious!" he shouted hastily. The blush was back on his face in full force, he could feel it. Trying to moderate his tone a little, Flik continued, "I'm their bodyguard, their escort."

"That makes sense. As you may or may not be aware, all students live in the dormitories on the west end of the campus. During the first two weeks of orientation, you, their bodyguard, may reside at the lodging house east of the administration building. If you wish to remain in the city after the two-week period, you will have to find a residence off-campus."

"I understand." Flik sincerely hoped that they wouldn't be here that long.

Once Wakaba was done with the form, the receptionist called in an aide, handed the forms over to her, and turned back to address the new students. "Allow me to offer you a formal welcome to the New Leaf Academy. You are now in your two-week orientation period. During this time, you will be expected to diligently study the classes so that you can make a choice on you course of study. We will also schedule meetings with counselors who will help you refine your choices. Remember, students who prove to be problematic or who can't meet their financial commitments will be expelled."

Riou nodded somberly. "I understand."

Wakaba and Meg both eagerly said, "Yes ma'am!"

Millie smiled brightly. "Okay!"

Eilie looked a little less enthusiastic. "I'm not going to cause any problems."

Pilika didn't say anything, but she did nod.

And finally, Luc muttered, "Yeah, whatever."

The receptionist stood up. "Those are excellent replies. If you should have any troubles during your stay here, do not hesitate to see me or one of the other counselors. My name is Emilia, by the way. If I'm not here, you can find me at the library, or in room two-thirty one. Now then, why don't you come with me, and I'll give you a little tour of this building."

As they started down one of the corridors that led deeper into the building, Nanami tugged on Flik's wide, rose sleeve to get his attention. "I'm a little nervous," she said softly. "What happens if I mess up?"

Flik tried to smile reassuringly, though he was having similar thoughts. "Don't worry. Just keep your eyes peeled, and we'll see what Fitcher comes up with. Hopefully, we'll get our chance to meet…the person we're here to meet."

Nanami shook her head. "I wasn't worried about that, silly. This is my first time at a real school. I don't want to look stupid in front of everyone."

Flik glanced down the hallway; the others were well ahead of them. "Come on, we don't want to fall behind."

As stealthily as they could, he and Nanami rejoined the others. Emilia was speaking. "Here you will see the offices for the various department heads. These two closest are for the head of the runemasters and the head of the department of fine arts. Let's see, maybe you'd like to meet some of them?" She knocked on the first door, but there was no answer. "Hmm, I guess she's not in at the moment. That's odd, it says the rune mistress has office hours now."

Emilia walked down to the next office, knocked on the door, and asked, "Hey, Jude, are you in?" The answer came back in the affirmative, so they went in. The head of the department of fine arts was a tall man in a black smock, blue shirt, and white pants. He had a long white cloth wrapped around the top of his head, so that it covered his hair. In the middle of his office sat the unfinished sculpture of a man.

"Still having no luck with that sculpture of Alec Wisemail?" Emilia asked.

"My muse has fled right out the window," Jude answered.

"Perhaps we could assign some of your classes to other teachers?"

"Oh no, I couldn't do that. It wouldn't be right to burden the faculty because of a little problem like this."

Emilia smiled. "Well, as long as you don't feel overloaded. Would you like to say a few words about your department to the new students?"

Jude seemed to see the newcomers for the first time. "Ah, yes. If any of you youngsters wishes to explore your creative side, then let me be the first to welcome you into my department. We cover many disciplines, not the least of which is sculpture, but also painting, music, dance, item appraisal, and, for the first time ever, blacksmith studies."

After the meeting with Jude, the tour continued. The hall opened up onto a long, open area with stairs leading up at one end and several intersecting passages. Emilia was about to speak when a tall, lean man in a sleeveless orange shirt and orange pants emerged from one of the side halls. He had a yellow turban wrapped around his head, and both the back of his shirt and the crosspiece of his blade had spider motifs.

Emilia was rattled by his arrival. "Oh, Lord Shin, has something happened?"

Shin paused, suspiciously scrutinizing the children and then appraising Flik. Flik nervously kept his hands off his sword, not wanting to draw too much attention. He could see that Shin had the demeanor of a skilled professional.

After a moment, Emilia saw what Shin was looking at. "These are just a bunch of new students and their bodyguard."

Shin nodded, never taking his eyes off of Flik. "I see. Excuse me, but I have business to attend to in town." His guard never slipping, he crossed the room and ducked down the hallway leading back to the entrance.

When Emilia didn't begin talking right away, Flik asked, "Who was that? He seems pretty important."

"Oh, him? He's a member of the academy security team, nothing more," she answered uneasily.

Flik didn't believe that for a moment, but he decided not to press Emilia on the matter. If this "Lord" Shin had anything to do with Lady Teresa, then showing too much interest would only make trouble. He would do his investigating at a latter hour.

Meanwhile, Emilia recovered some of her composure. "I'm afraid we'll have to cut the tour a bit short. You'll want to check into your dorms before it gets too late. Also, you may wear your civilian clothes during the orientation period, but thereafter, school uniforms are mandatory. You may buy them at the school store. I hope you will all make fine students at our academy!" She bowed and quickly walked down the hall after Shin.

Flik looked over at Riou. "Let's get you checked into your dorms." As they walked back past the entrance, he noted that Emilia was not at her desk. Outside, the sun was in the west, the sky filling up with red light. They strolled on, heading towards a fountain that sat in the middle of an intersection of paths. Approaching this, Flik saw two schoolgirls walking towards them, apparently in the middle of an intense conversation.

"You should've seen him, he was so totally cool!" the blond girl raved. Flik concentrated on her for a moment. Had he met her before? "There he was, fighting just for my sake," she continued. "He was like some Prince Charming that you read about in a fantasy novel. It is so true what they say about love at first sight. If only you could've been there!"

Her friend sounded skeptical. "How's this guy different from that Harmonian that you were after? Besides, I thought you were drooling over Lord Shin." Flik's ears perked. There was that name again.

Flik and his charges were passing close to the two girls. The blonde's response was perfectly clear. "This is completely different from that Harmonian. You should've seen the passion in those eyes as he looked at me, prepared to defend my honor against the occupier." She sighed dreamily. "He is the very flower of chivalry in full bloom." Then she gave such a shriek of startled surprise that Flik began glancing around for an attacker.

"I used to use that ear," Luc griped, though no one was listening to him.

The blond girl rushed to Flik's side. For one long moment, he thought she was going to try and jump into his arms, but she seemed to decide that this might be a bit too forward. "This is like a dream! It's fate that we meet again! Here you are at my own school. Did you come just to see me?"

"Who are you?" Flik asked. "Have we met?"

The girl was not put off in the slightest by Flik's faulty memory, but pressed closer to him, looking up at his face through blinking eyes. "My noble knight must forgive me. My name is Nina. I beg to ask, may my lord tell his fair lady…his name?"

Flik was busy working over the implications of all those possessives. "Huh? Hey, wait just a second."

But the girl had already scooted back over to her friend and was pointing at Flik excitedly. "See? Here he is! Isn't he the most handsome guy in the whole world?"

Nina's friend, a brunette, did not share her enthusiasm. "Your guy's all right, I guess. But he's got nothing on that Georg Prime. If only he'd stayed around, we wouldn't be in this mess."

"I can't believe how you're into fossils," Nina replied incredulously. "Sure Georg Prime might've been good looking twenty years ago, maybe, but he's all withered up now."

"Hey, Bluto, let's get moving," Nanami complained.

That was a mistake, for Nina was right back into Flik in an instant. "My lord's name is Bluto," she murmured. "Such a lordly, powerful name for my lord of a man."

That was enough for Meg, who simply began laughing out loud.

But Nina did not stop. "If you may permit your lady to ask, whatever is my lord doing at this school? Surely you haven't come simply to gaze at me?"

Flik tried to keep his voice even. "We're looking around the school."

First one, then the other of Nina's hands clamped around his right wrist, and she started pulling him away from Riou and the others. "Oh please, let me guide you! I know everything there is to see around here. Shall we get going, Sir Bluto?"

Nina's friend commented, "Just humor her. She'll get bored with you in a couple of days."

Flik might've stopped it right then, but he wasn't going to resort to force to get himself out of this. He also didn't want to get into a shouting match, so he let himself be pulled along.

Nanami shouted after him. "Hey Bluto! Where do you want to meet us tomorrow?"

"Outside the boys' dorm. I'll meet you all there. We can discuss things then."

Wakaba waved her arm. "Good luck, Bluto!"

"I would never be that brazen," Eilie observed, glancing at Riou.

Meg was still laughing, but managed to yell, "Try to enjoy yourself."

And, as Flik was pulled out of hearing range, Luc added, "Better him than me."


	39. Chapter 39 His Stalker

**Chapter 39 – His Stalker**

"That is the rune lab," Nina declared, pointing in the direction of yet another squat, white building. Her other hand remained firmly latched around Flik's wrist, pulling him none too gently along. "I don't spend too much time there, so my lord shouldn't go searching for his lady there. Now, moving on."

In the past hour or so, Nina, her friend, and Flik had covered most of the campus, starting with the dorms in the west, then the library, cafeteria, science lab, and now the rune lab. At each place, Nina had given little hints as to the best time for him to rendezvous with her.

"Over there is the recreation building," Nina said, pointing at a building to the south. "They have a swimming pool in there, which is cleaned every day by mages with water runes. I like to go swimming there nearly every morning, before the rest of the campus is awake. It would be a great time for my lord to see his lady." She looked up at him thoughtfully. "Does my lord swim?"

Flik was busy sorting through the pitfalls in this conversation. He certainly didn't want to promise this girl that he'd show up tomorrow to watch her swim. "I learned when I was young, back in Warrior…Falena. I haven't in a while, though."

Nina's friend chimed in. "The only reason you're ever there is ogle Lord Shin. He's the only thing that could get you up that early."

Nina was clearly discomforted by the change in the discussion. "I am not! I don't care a bit about Lord Shin."

Flik, meanwhile, had found an opening to recover his balance. "Tell me about Lord Shin, please. I saw him during the tour of the administration building, but Emilia didn't say much about him."

"He's not important," Nina answered. "He just negotiates with the Highlanders on the academy's behalf."

"Not important?" her friend replied incredulously. "He was only Lady Teresa's bodyguard until the city fell. I tell you, he probably knows exactly where she's hiding."

Flik made sure not to nod. It seemed that this Lord Shin was a person of note. The first thing he would have to investigate was obviously this former bodyguard.

"You don't need to blab it to the whole world," Nina shouted. "You never know when some Highland spy might be listening. Do you want Lady Teresa to get caught?"

Her friend shrugged her shoulders. "It doesn't make much difference to me, as long as the academy keeps going.

"It'll make some difference if Highland soldiers decide to raid the dorms," Nina answered tempestuously. "Or if they declare what will and won't be taught here. Greenhill has always prided itself on academic independence. It's why we separated from Muse in the first place."

Yawning, her friend answered, "Well, it won't matter at all when I'm back in Rockland. I'll be far away from all the fighting then."

Nina's frown was scathing. "You won't be so far away if Luca Blight decides to invade your country. You think someone like him will be satisfied with conquering only one?"

Silence descended after that exchange. With the evening darkness settling in, Nina led Flik towards the attendants' dorm at the east end of the campus. At the door of the building, she leaned close to him and asked, "Does my lord like box lunches?"

Without thinking, he responded, "Yeah."

That got her smiling again. "Great, I'll be here bright and early to give you your own very special lunch." She and her friend turned and walked back down the path. Flik refrained from smacking his forehead and went inside. Here he found the master of lodging, who had prepared a room for him already. The room wasn't terribly large, but it did have a dresser, bed, table, and chair. It also had a window that opened out into the night air.

Flik paused to consider the facts. Lord Shin was the former bodyguard of Lady Teresa. He now worked for the academy in some position that involved negotiating with the Highlanders. He turned over the idea that Nina's friend had suggested- that Shin knew where Lady Teresa was hidden. Did it follow that the academy might also know, since he was now in their employ?

Two courses of action presented themselves. First, he could search the campus for clues. The administration building seemed like a good place to begin. Second, he could try to find and follow Shin to see if he went anywhere suspicious. He shook his head. He didn't know where Shin was. It would be blind luck to simply run into him. For tonight that left only the first option, search the administration building.

He waited for nearly three-quarters of an hour to make his move, until the rest of the building had grown quiet and still. Rising from his chair, he extinguished the lamps in his room. Then he let his eyes adjust to the pale light of the Blue Moon filtering in from the window. When he could finally make everything out reasonably well, he crept over to the window, carefully pulled it open, and slipped out into the moonlight.

There were almost no clouds in the night sky, and the Blue Moon, nearly full, was rising about the trees in the east. Flik suppressed a shiver. The air was dry and uncomfortably cool, though he couldn't see his breath. He stealthily made his way around the building until he was on the walkway in front of it. Now that he had the path to guide him, he walked confidently onward.

After four wrong turns and an hour of blundering about, jumping nervously at the slightest noises, Flik found himself at the fountain outside the administration building. He no longer felt the chill, but was perspiring slightly. Now came the critical part. He had to somehow break into the building, find their records office, find any germane papers, and not get caught. He shook his head; where was Krin when he needed him?

There were no guards in sight, but Flik decided against boldly walking up to the doors to see if they were unlocked. Instead, he took an indirect approach to the building, spending fifteen more minutes walking a circuitous route to approach the structure from the side. He moved along this edge, working his way forward until he got to the very first window before the front. He opened it and squeezed his way into the administration building.

The first thing Flik noticed was how quiet the inside seemed. The walls muffled the nighttime insects that he hadn't even noticed when he'd been outside. It was also very, very dark. The moonlight from the windows did not penetrate the hallways beyond the foyer.

Flik waited a long time to be certain that no one else was in the building. Finally he made a fist with his right hand and, using an old trick he'd been taught, carefully generated a small ball of weak blue light from the lightning rune on that hand. It gave off enough illumination for him to see the contours of the foyer. He visualized Emilia at her desk, remembering how she gave the forms to an aide who'd walked down the nearest hallway. Now Flik followed in those footsteps.

The first door on the left was marked "Administration and Records" and it came open when he worked the knob. Flik didn't pause to ponder his good fortune, but stepped into the room, softly pulling the door shut behind him. It was filled with filing cabinets and shelves, all unmarked. Sighing, he pulled the first cabinet open, held his lightning rune close, and rifled through the folders.

Hours passed, and Flik looked through folders representing students, faculty, and the academy's finances, but he found nothing that hinted to the location of Lady Teresa. The only thing that he'd learned conclusively was that Lord Shin did not have any file on record in this room. He'd searched carefully, so it wasn't much of an effort to put the room back in order. He was just about to exit through the room's window when he heard a noise from the foyer.

In a heartbeat, Flik extinguished his rune light. The room went unbearably dark and he had to work to keep from panicking. He didn't move, barely breathed, and waited. Slowly, a new light appeared, visible through the cracks in the door. It was dim, but an unmistakably natural yellow. It passed the Administration and Records room without slowing, making its way down the hall.

Mentally Flik counted out to twenty, crept soundlessly to the door, and opened it. Glancing down the hallway, he could see a faint light at the far end, near the stairs leading up to the second level. Even at that distance, he could make out the orange color of the person's clothes. It had to be Shin.

The light suddenly darted to the left, heading down one of the side passages. Flik tip-toed after it, barely letting his feet hit the floor. He kept one hand on the wall, feeling as it passed over other doors. The torchlight faded so that he couldn't see much of anything. He nearly toppled over when the wall opened onto the corridor that Shin had gone down.

He couldn't see anything; there was no light, no sign of Shin. Swallowing his nervousness, Flik entered the passage. It turned a corner and came to an abrupt end. A small window on the side wall provided just enough light to see that the only other thing in this hallway was a small, marble bust. He stopped and looked around, finally turning so that he was gazing back down the hallway, but could see no traces of Shin.

A woman laughed behind Flik, the sound deep and languorous. He turned towards the speaker and was caught in her trap. An unusually tall, beautiful woman now stood next to the bust. A thin band of silver ran across her collarbone and around her shoulders. Two strips of diaphanous white silk descended from the band, tightly covering -if such a word could be said to apply- the generous curves of her breasts, but leaving everything else bare. The skirt of this dress was of the same material and it fell to the floor, but was also slit to the hip on the left side.

Her long, silver hair was up in a high ponytail that still dangled below her shoulders. She also had long bangs that, collected into two strips, trailed down to her collarbone. When she moved her head, those bangs veiled her blue eyes.

Flik's mouth went dry. Before he could help himself he blurted, "J-Jeane?" Two years ago, this same enigmatic woman had served as the runemistress for the Liberation Army. During that time, he'd been aware of her only peripherally, since he'd been in mourning over the death of Odessa. This moment was the closest he'd ever been to Jeane. All he could hope was that she did not recognize him.

He could not look away from her. A buzzing began between Flik's ears, a strange mesmerism that compelled him to keep his gaze on her. Her pale skin seemed to radiate its own light as she smiled invitingly at him. "You know my name, but I do not know yours. Do be a gentleman and introduce yourself."

The mesmer was a runic power, but one that he could not resist. He was only just able to remember his cover. "My name is Bluto, ma'am." His voice cracked on the latter part.

Her answering laugh was slow, laced with seduction. It seemed to him that Jeane saw right through his attempts at deception. She took a few steps from the bust, her hips swaying rhythmically. Flik began to give ground at her approach. "Well Bluto, what are you doing in this building in the middle of the night?" she demanded. "Trespassing is a serious offense, one that can't go…unpunished."

The compulsion nearly loosed the answer from his lips, but Flik fought back with all his remaining willpower, finally answering, "I-I can't tell you. It's important." He could not evade, could not lie. His back bumped up against the corridor wall, pinned there by her eyes.

She licked her tongue along her top lip. "Bluto, Falenan by your dress. It's been a while since I've talked with anyone from that country." She drew closer to him. "Why don't we go to my office? We can have such an interesting…conversation about what you're doing here. Falenan men make such interesting conversationalists. It comes from the political system, I think. They have so little power that they're always eager to take any chance to…dominate."

A mental veil seemed to draw aside in Flik's mind, and Jeane's presence redoubled in strength, a terribly beautiful yet utterly alien power that caused his will to quail. Backed onto the wall with her looming over him, he felt much like a child being scolded by a parent or a rabbit stalked by a wolf. He knew, instinctively, that the moment her hand reached his, the last shreds of his resistance would melt away.

An image of Odessa flashed in Flik's mind. Pain raced up his right hand and arm, his rune stirring, and a wall of coursing electricity flashed between him and Jeane, casting twisting shadows on the walls of the hallway. Jeane's smile slipped and the mesmer was silenced, leaving him in full control of his mind and body.

"I'm sorry, I must go," Flik said, and ran back down the hall as quickly as he could. Bitter experience had taught him that there was no shame in fleeing when overmatched, and he knew there was no standing against that power. Hands flung forward, he slowed his precipitous flight to a jog, blundering about for walls to guide him. He found one, let it take him down another passage, which finally led back to the foyer. Crashing against the wooden doors, his hands scrabbled furiously to work the knob. Again, it was his good fortune that Shin had left the doors unlocked, and they came open, admitting him out into the cool night.

Both moons were now up. The Blue Moon was over in the west, the Scarlet Moon, a waxing crescent, was rising out of the east. Flik shook his head to clear his thoughts. Dawn was only a couple of hours away and he needed rest. Without looking back at the administration building, he jogged down the path towards the fountain and started back towards the attendants' lodge. When he finally made it back, he climbed in through his window and promptly collapsed onto his bed.

It felt like he'd been asleep for minutes when Nina's voice shouted, "Sir Bluto, my shining knight, are you awake?" Her fist pounded on his door. Flik, not entirely sure where he was, groaned and rolled over, right out of his bed, and hit the floor with a thud. "I've made my knight a nice box lunch," Nina declared. "Is my knight fully clothed?" She giggled. "Ready or not, his lady's coming in."

A surge of adrenaline propelled him up and out the window as the door opened. As soon as his feet were on the ground, his legs started working up into a sprint, and he dashed away from the lodging. He ran down the paths randomly, but, unlike last night, now there were other people on them. Both teachers and students gave him odd looks as he tore past them, sometimes with such speed that they had to jump out of his way.

Several twists and turns later, he slowed his gait to a more natural jog, as if he was simply out for some morning exercise. He came to a stop under a tree to catch his breath and try to figure out what he was going to do. Then he realized that he was supposed to be meeting with Riou and the others over by the boys' dorm. He started jogging again, heading in the direction of the boys' dorm.

He found them in the field out in front of the dorm. Nanami, Wakaba, and Pilika had somehow convinced Luc to use his rune to swirl dandelion seeds into geometric patterns. Millie was chasing after Bonaparte, who'd broken free from her grasp and was busy trying to eat butterflies. Meg had popped the top off of Gadget and was working on the wires spilling out from the barrel body. Eilie and Riou sat in the shade of a tree, the former looking nervous, the latter calm.

Flik came to a halt by Riou. "Yo, good morning," he panted. "Did you get a good night's sleep?"

Meg looked up from where she was reconnecting wires. "Gosh, Flik, you look awful. Your hair is a mess and you haven't shaved at all. What were you doing last night?" she asked knowingly.

Everyone was gathering around him now. "All I did was some investigating," Flik shot back. "That's all."

Meg snickered. Riou stood up and asked, "Did you learn anything useful? It's going to be hard for use to do anything if we don't know where to start."

"I learned some things. The key to everything is this Shin guy. Before Highland came, he was the bodyguard for Lady Teresa, but now he seems to work for the academy as a negotiator with Highland. I think it's likely that he knows where Lady Teresa is, but I don't know his goals. He could be negotiating for everyone's best interests or he could have selfish motives."

"We should track him down and make him talk," Nanami asserted.

"No!" Flik shook his head. "That's far too conspicuous. There's no telling what he might do if he thinks we're on to him. What I want is for you to find out what you can about him. Ask discrete questions. If people see you as just another bunch of school kids, they might be more willing to talk. Also, I'd be careful if you go into town. There aren't any Highlanders here at the academy, but they're all over the rest of the town."

A premonition caused Flik to look up and see Nina skipping down the path towards the dorms. He could feel sweat starting to form on his forehead. "Riou, I'm going to do my best to follow this guy. So you don't need to do anything rash, okay? I'll see you later. If we don't see each other again today, we'll meet here tomorrow morning." He turned and started off at a jog again, not wanting to be caught by his stalker.

After more running, he finally came to the conclusion that the best way to lose Nina would be to leave the campus entirely. He made his way to the gates at the south end of the campus, showed the chit he got from the stables to the attendants, and walked out onto the broad square in front of the school.

As he walked through the city, Flik got the general idea that much of the commerce was centered on the academy. There were vendors and shops that sold school uniforms, textbooks, dorm furniture, and even a few places that sold class notes and copies of tests. Other than the vendors, there were plenty of other citizens on the streets, but they continued to be less than welcoming. There were times when he felt sure that groups of malcontents were sizing him up, only holding back because he had his sword on his hip. There were some streets that he simply avoided because they were too narrow or too quiet for his comfort.

Highland soldiers patrolled the streets in small groups. Most of the people tried to ignore them. For their part, the soldiers surprisingly didn't draw attention to themselves. They didn't appear to be lording it over the people or inconveniencing them in the slightest. Greenhill hardly looked like a city under military law.

That changed just before noon. A column of fifty Highland soldiers suddenly appeared from a side street, marching at the double-time. In their wake a large mob was forming, shouting insults but doing little else. Flik followed after the procession, curious to see what was going on. The soldiers marched to an inn near the city walls, joining a cordon of other Highlanders around the building. A crowd of nearly a thousand people ebbed and flowed around the cordon, but nobody was willing to challenge the soldiers' spears yet.

Rather than fight his way up to the front, Flik found some crates and climbed up them to get a better view. Now he could see the commander of the Highland detachment, a blond man with broad shoulders. The officer was familiar to Flik's eyes, but it took him a moment to conjure up the memory of this man fleeing from Viktor, kicking off pieces of his armor as he ran.

Flik laughed, a noise that was fortunately swallowed up by the crowd. This was Rowd, who'd led the Unicorn Brigade, who'd tired -and failed- to have Riou and Jowy executed. Apparently that humiliation hadn't hurt his career.

"We've received information that the acting mayor of Greenhill, Lady Teresa, is holed up in this building." Rowd announced in a loud voice. "We wish only that she be returned to her rightful position, that we all might have peace and stability for Greenhill."

Voices in the crowd taunted him, demanding that he show proof. Rowd sneered in response. "The informant was a soldier from Muse, a proud defender of this city. To think he was bought so easily. Now stop harassing us and let us do our job."

The crowd groaned, its anger turning away from the Highland soldiers and towards foreigners, those from Muse in particular. Rowd spoke to one of his men, but Flik was unable to hear the words. Three dozen soldiers burst past the innkeeper and his wife, entering the inn from several directions at once. Rowd started laughing. "If they don't offer their full cooperation, you have my permission to burn the building down."

Suddenly the crowd murmured, parting to let a man in orange walked towards Rowd. Flik started; it was Shin! At once Shin began speaking with the commander, but all Flik could hear was Rowd's responses.

"Atrocities? Are you kidding? You're bringing this on yourselves by being stubborn. Especially you, who knows exactly where Lady Teresa's hiding."

Shin spoke some more and Rowd laughed. "You think this is a breach of our agreement? You should just be glad our Lord Commander made that promise, or I'd haul you and the faculty of that academy in for a little 'persuasion' right now."

Shin's response was curt, but again Flik could not make it out. Rowd shook his head. "If you want to do something useful, then get this crowd off of our backs. If anything happens and we do have to burn this place down, it'll be all their faults. They should focus their rage on the Muse soldiers who turned on them."

The Highland soldiers who had entered the inn now came back empty-handed. Rowd scowled in anger and quickly got his men marching away. Shin lingered a moment longer to speak a few words of apology to the crowd. Then he started walking towards the main street leading to the academy. Flik realized that this was another chance to follow Shin. He jumped down from the crates, ran down one street, and ducked down a narrower alley leading towards the main street.

Before he could really see what was happening, he crashed into somebody coming the opposite way. Food exploded out of the brown paper bags that the person was carrying, and an egg smacked Flik right between the eyes, covering his face in a gooey mess. His momentum carried him forward so that he fell fully on top of the other person, who squeaked in a feminine manner.

It took Flik several moments to recover his bearings. When he had done so, he looked down at the blond girl he'd collided with.

"I did not expect my knight to be so bold," Nina said breathlessly.

That got Flik off of her in an instant. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that." He saw some of the contents of her two bags had spilled out in the crash. Glancing at the far end of the alley, he could tell that he'd missed his chance to pursue Shin. He started grabbing food items and putting them back into the bags.

Nina sat up and put on a petulant face. "My knight wasn't there to take the box lunch his lady made."

Flik kept his eyes firmly on the food. "We must've just missed each other. I had to speak with the young master this morning." He had now refilled both bags and stood up, holding them in his arms. He couldn't help but be polite in this situation. "If you'd like, I can carry these back to the school for you."

Nina's smile was ecstatic. "Oh would you? My knight is far too kind, especially since this was all his lady's fault."

They started walking, emerging out onto the main street. As expected, Shin was long gone. "You don't have to keep referring to me as 'my knight,'" Flik spoke. "It makes me uncomfortable. Just call me Bluto, please."

"Of course!" Nina blushed. "And my Bluto can call me Nina."

Actually, he hadn't spoken to her directly at all. Now, in an attempt to guide the conversation into safer waters, he did. "What were you doing down here?"

"I was out getting some supplies when I heard about all the commotion. I wanted to see if those filthy Highlanders discovered anything."

"They didn't, as far as I could tell."

Nina gave a relieved sigh. "I'm glad. It would be so horrible if they got their hands on her. People might even start supporting the occupation then."

"You seem very different from most of the other students," Flik replied. "They don't appear to care on way or the other."

Nina huffed angrily. "None of them even knew there was a war until the Highland troops showed up. They don't know about what Highland did in East Muse! They don't know what Prince Luca Blight is like! All they care about are their stupid studies. They don't understand at all what sort of world they're going to graduate into."

"You think Lady Teresa would stand up to Highland if she had the chance?"

"Yes!" Nina answered heatedly. "She was the only one to send help to Muse and I'm certain she'd try to help anyone who was fighting Highland." Suddenly she lowered her voice. "I can't tell you where I heard this, but I'm even sure that she's interested in the force at North Window."

Flik nodded, wondering where she got that information. "I saw Lord Shin at the disturbance too. Who do you think he supports?"

Nina paused briefly. "I don't really know him well. I guess he supports the academy."

Flik didn't press the matter. He didn't want to arouse any suspicions, and Nina wasn't likely to know much more than she'd given. They made their way inside the gates of the academy, where Nina took possession of the bags again. Surprisingly, she didn't ask him to escort her all the way to her room, for which he was glad. He ate a large afternoon meal at the cafeteria, wandered back to the attendants' lodge, and climbed into his bed to get some much-needed sleep.

Still, he was awake by the time the sun had set. As before, he exited his quarters by the window and walked towards the administration building. He couldn't say why in particular, but he felt certain that Shin had a particular tie to this building. If Flik waited long enough, he'd get a chance to follow that man again.

Flik crouched down in the bushes by the steps leading to the doors, hiding himself behind dark leaves. Hours passed, fireflies winked in and out around him, and mosquitoes bit at him. His legs and arms grew stiff, but he soldiered on. Then, as he was beginning to tell himself that this had been a waste of time, the doors to the building swung open.

A figure walked out, looked around, and shut the doors behind him. Flik didn't need more than the moonlight to tell him that this shadow was Shin. At once, Shin walked to the fountain and turned to the right, his movements fluid and quick. Flik paused until Shin was beyond him, then carefully rose out of his crouch. He began to trail after Shin, keeping him in sight, but staying off the stone path.

This time, Flik promised himself, he was going to find out what Shin's secret really was.


	40. Chapter 40 Conspiracy of One

**Chapter 40 – Conspiracy of One**

At first, Shin seemed to be heading for the boys' dorm, but he veered off the main path just before he got there, ducking down a narrower lane. Flik had to break into a quick shuffle to catch up to him. Shin followed this path for a while, then suddenly turned to the left on an intersecting path, nearly coming right at Flik, who flopped onto the dewy ground to avoid detection. When Shin was past, Flik got up and continued the pursuit.

He couldn't tell if Shin knew he was being followed or was just paranoid, but Shin kept to a widely deviating course, which led them to the western perimeter of the academy. Here Shin ducked into the forest at the edge of the school, Flik quickly mimicking the move. Under the trees, Flik froze in place. The light of the moons didn't easily penetrate here, and he was no woodsman. For a long moment, he was sure he'd lost Shin, but then he saw the silhouette of the man between a gap in the trees.

Flik tried to creep as quietly as he could, but leaves on the underbrush rustled as he passed. Shin started, abandoned his cover, and sprinted back into the open, running across a wide field. There was no way Flik could follow without also coming out there, which he did. Shin was twenty yards ahead of Flik, and Flik could see him looking back over his shoulder to study his opponent. They were running in the general direction of a building, the library, Flik thought.

When Shin reached the building's side, he paused to draw his spider sword, and slipped inside through a fortuitously open window. Flik was smart enough not to pursue through that same window, but opened the one adjacent. He too drew his sword before clambering into the library.

It was pitch black inside, but Flik had the general impression that bookcases loomed over him on either side. His feet were on some sort of carpeting. He fitfully stabbed into the darkness with his blade, trying to feel for anything. After a few tries, he was able to place the two shelves, which formed a corridor not more than a yard wide. He heard nothing of Shin.

Edging forward, Flik felt along the shelf with his free hand until it came to an end. With his sword ready, he turned the corner and stepped into the next aisle over. It was empty. He could see moonlight filtering in from the window. Disappointed, he dropped his shoulders a little. There would be no finding Shin now. Another chance had slipped through Flik's hands.

He was just about to exit via the window when he suddenly became aware of another light source. Shifting around, he saw a very dim illumination coming from ahead and above him, possibly from the second floor of the building. It didn't seem possible that Shin would make such a careless mistake, but Flik decided to go investigate. He took a few steps forward on the carpet.

On the third stride, the floor dropped down a step into a sunken area. Unfortunately, Flik wasn't ready for it and stumbled, flailing around in the darkness. His sword, still drawn, plunged into a soft object, all the way up to the cross guard. Trying to regulate his breathing, he pulled the weapon out from what felt like an armchair. A shadow moved in the light above, but it didn't go out.

Flik moved more carefully now, working his way around several more chairs and a table, until he could see the faint outline of stairs going up. He climbed them, slowly and deliberately, crouching as he came to the end. The light was situated at one of the reading tables, and a figure sat by it in a chair. Cautiously Flik advanced on the table.

As he crept closer, he began to relax. This wasn't Shin, but a girl in a short green skirt and a ponytail. It was Meg. What was she doing in the library? She was reading a book. The memory flashed through his mind that her particular reason for coming was to find a certain book. Flik was just about to surreptitiously depart when Gadget's dry voice intoned, "Warning, Mistress Meg, there is an intruder approaching from behind you." Meg glanced back over her shoulder, glaring directly at Flik.

He smiled, gave a casual wave, and said, "Hey, Meg. Strange time to be up, isn't it?"

For the life of him, he never did figure out why Meg reacted the way she did. She screamed, "It's the ghost!" and flung one of her knives in his direction. It caught in the fabric of his wide Falenan sleeve.

"Switching to attack mode," Gadget declared calmly, rolling out from under the table. Flik held his hands out in a sign of peace. Of course his sword was still in his right hand. Meg, backing away, knocked into the table, upsetting and extinguishing the light. She screamed again. "Switching to infrared mode," Gadget announced. "Continuing attack."

This was too much for Flik. He wasn't going to try to defend himself in the darkness. He turned and quickly tried to find his way back to the stairs. "Target is retreating." Gadget's voice sounded more ominous without any light. "Continuing attack. Will put target to rout."

"Don't leave me alone, you stupid machine!" Meg wailed. "I don't want to be alone with a ghost!"

Flik found the stairs, but not the railing. His arms swung wildly as he fell, trying to find some purchase. It was actually his shoulder that hit the railing, spinning him off it. He landed back first several more steps down, momentum carrying him into an awkward back roll. He crunched into the other railing, flipped over it, and fell the wrong way into an armchair below.

From somewhere far above, Flik heard, "Target is no longer a threat. Terminating attack." He thought he could make out Meg sobbing hysterically. Then he crawled out of the chair and lay panting on the floor for a few moments, relieved to find that, despite all the pain, everything seemed to work normally. He stood up and blundered through the darkness, looking for a way out. Disoriented, he found a window, opened it up, and oozed out, right onto a rose bush.

He could feel the thorns tugging at the fabric of his robe as he fought to extricate himself. When that was done, he staggered around to the path, feeling hopelessly dejected. Another night wasted without anything to show for his work. He started walking back towards the attendants' lodge, eyes on the ground, wondering how things might get worse.

"Is that my Bluto?" Nina's voice asked.

Flik looked up. He was standing by the fountain near the administration building. Nina had arrived by the southern path. As surprised as he was to see her, he could see that she was equally surprised by his appearance. He decided that now was the right time to take control of the conversation. "What are you doing out so late at night?"

"N-nothing. What about you?" she retorted uneasily.

Flik shrugged, aware that he had leaves stuck on his clothing. "Same here."

Nervously she gestured to the fountain. "You want to sit down? We could talk about stuff."

Actually, he did feel like resting. His body was bruising up and he needed to clear his head. He sat down and closed his eyes, listening to the splashing of the water. Then Nina sat down next to him, snuggling up against his side. There went any chance at clearing his head.

After a few uncomfortable moments, Nina murmured, "Has my Bluto ever been in love?"

Reflexively Flik's hand moved towards the sword at his side, but there was Nina, pressed up against him. She seemed to take this gesture as an invitation and took his hand in hers. His head turned; she was gazing intently at him. He tried to keep his cool as he answered, "I have been." _I still am._

She leaned into him, tilting her head up towards his, making him scoot back just a bit. "Were you in love with some lady in a far land, that you'll never see again? How tragic! Hiding all of your pain under that manly exterior. What you need is a little comfort." Her other hand was suddenly resting on his thigh.

Flik swallowed, trying to keep his voice nonchalant. "Actually, I like to think that she's really close to me, watching over me. In a sense, you might say she's always with me."

Nina's head, which had been drifting up towards his, stopped. "Always with you?"

"Yeah," Flik answered, trying to back a little more away from her.

"Even at night? Even this night?" There was a plaintive quiver in her voice.

Now he was getting annoyed. "What part of always don't you understand?"

Nina suddenly broke eye contact with him, and, in the next moment, Flik ended up back first in the fountain. Coughing and soaking wet, he pulled himself back up to a sitting position, trying to recover his bearings.

Nina was no longer next to him, but standing about a yard away. The moonlight seemed to shimmer wetly in her eyes as she said, "I have to go now. I…hope to see you tomorrow. S-sleep well." She ran from the fountain, wiping at her face.

That was the second girl he'd left in tears this night, Flik realized. He didn't understand any of it. On the other hand, he understood the water dripping off his sleeves all too well. He was already beginning to shiver. Without wasting any more time, he jogged back to his room, entered through the window, and pulled off the sopping bow, robe, collar, gauntlets, and his yellow shirt. Luckily his pants had not gotten too wet. He set the waterlogged garments out to dry and climbed into bed. It was then that he noticed that Meg's dagger had fallen out somewhere along the way.

Wakefulness came all too quickly. Flik didn't want to move. His muscles ached and the bed was dry and warm, but he knew Riou would be waiting for news. He rolled up to a sitting position, the pain making him regret the motion, and stood up. Moving stiffly, he walked over to the table where he'd placed his wet clothing the night before.

The yellow shirt was damp, but wearable. Flik stuffed himself into it. The robe was a wet mess that he was perfectly glad to leave out to dry. He also left off the collar, bow, and gauntlets. As he was checking the clothes, he noticed a small slip of paper on the table. The paper was wet, but he could clearly see that it had smudged ink on it. This was a message, then. Had someone slipped in during the night to leave him a note or had it been there when he'd returned?

Flik shook his head; it was all too likely that the latter was the truth. He'd been too exhausted upon his return to notice it. He sat down and tried to read the smudges. All he really got was, "-at the square in front of the school." The signature appeared to be Fitcher's. Flik needed to find Riou and the others quickly, so that they could all hear whatever Fitcher wanted to say. He groaned, stood up, and put on his sword belt.

There was a knock at his door. With trepidation, Flik asked, "Who is it?"

Taking his words for an invitation, Emilia the librarian opened the door and walked through. Her face had a very stern look about it. "Good morning, Mister Bluto. I'd like to speak with you for a few moments, if you don't mind."

He did mind, but was too polite to say so. "Go ahead, and call me Bluto, please."

"Right." She walked over and sat in the chair by the table. "How long have you been in the service of Master Riou?"

That was not a question he'd been anticipating. He sat down on his bed before answering, "A couple of years." Then he remembered about the forms being three years old. "Five years," he amended quickly.

She nodded as if mentally taking notes. "Would you say that you make every effort to ensure Master Riou's safety?"

"I'm not sure I understand the gist of this, but yes, I would."

She made eye contact with him. "Would you break laws or rules to protect him?"

He was back on his feet in an instant. "Are you accusing me of doing something like that?" His mind was racing. How much did she know? What would Riou do if everybody's cover were blown?

She smiled easily. "Nothing like that. It's just that sometimes we find that our students' escorts can be a little overprotective. They don't seem to understand that we have a very competent security staff on campus to deal with these sorts of things. Occasionally there are unfortunate 'incidents' where bodyguards have been caught snooping around after hours. In all those cases, we've politely but firmly expelled the bodyguard from the campus and informed the local authorities. I'm afraid it just doesn't do to have armed men sneaking around a school at night."

Flik's palms were suddenly very sweaty. He rubbed them together. "I understand."

"Indeed. Since you've arrived, there've been two such incidents. You can rest assured that our security team is investigating them. Also, I'd also like to inform you that the library is now indefinitely closed. Have a good day." She stood up and walked from the room, closing the door after her.

Flik's head was spinning. His first thoughts were that they were on to him and that he'd have to abandon Riou. But that didn't make any sense. Why would Emilia give him any kind of warning if he was the prime suspect? Was it possible that she was going around to all the bodyguards this morning with the same news? That didn't seem likely, especially given that she'd highlighted his arrival and the library specifically.

He toyed with the idea that she'd come to warn him because she didn't want him caught. Why? Was she some sort of secret ally, hoping that he'd find Lady Teresa? However it was just as likely that she was some sort of Highland spy in the academy, waiting for him to reveal her location. There were too many permutations; he couldn't think them all through. Perhaps she was a friend of Fitcher?

He jumped. Fitcher! He was supposed to meet Fitcher with Riou and the others. His pained muscles protesting, Flik sprinted from the attendants' lodge, running down the paths of New Leaf Academy for the second straight day. He had a better understanding of the path system, so he made it to the boys' dorm fairly quickly. Even so, he was too late. If Riou and the others had waited for him, they were long gone by the time he arrived.

Flik considered going to find Fitcher on his own, but decided to search for Riou just a little longer. He jogged down another path, heading in the direction of the administration building. This time his persistence was rewarded, for Riou and the others were strolling towards the fountain -the same one he'd fallen into a few hours prior- just as he arrived.

"Yo, I'm very, very sorry I missed you this morning," Flik panted. He looked up and saw the curious expression on their faces. Nanami, in particular, looked concerned. She'd also changed out of her green dress into a school outfit, a gray skirt and red blazer. "What's wrong?" Flik asked.

Nanami was the one who voiced their concerns. "Fl-Bluto, are you…doing anything with Nina? She's always talking about you, about making meals for you, about waiting for you in your room, about-"

"She's totally got it for you," Meg interrupted. She looked none the worse for their little "encounter." She also didn't seem to recognize that he'd been the ghost.

Nanami shook her head. "I mean, you're allowed to make your own decisions and all, but we'd like to know just how interested in her you really are."

Flik blinked. All of the girls seemed to be very absorbed by this matter, even Wakaba, who'd only known him for three days. They were all staring intently at him. Luc was very pointedly looking up into the sky. Riou looked surprisingly annoyed by the whole issue, waiting for the answer with his arms crossed.

"I don't understand how this has happened," Flik said. "Nanami, I haven't done anything to gain her interest, I promise you that. I'm not interested in 'that' sort of relationship with a child."

For some strange reason, Nanami looked very relieved. "That's good. I thought for a moment that maybe you- wait! What do you mean by 'a child'?"

"That's enough of that," Riou said irritably. To Flik's surprise, the youth looked very tired, as if he too had not had enough sleep recently. Was Riou also investigating Lady Teresa's whereabouts? "Flik, do you have any news?" Riou continued.

"Oh, yes. I got instructions from Fitcher. We're supposed to wait for him in the square outside the academy."

"Finally," Riou muttered.

Today was Swordsdei, the beginning of the weekend, so there weren't a lot of classes going on. Consequently, many of the students were heading out into the city. As Flik and his group approached the gates, they heard an excited conversation.

"You think something's really going to happen?"

"Oh yeah, this is big. He's probably going to get beaten to a pulp."

Flik glanced at Riou. "Let's be careful. We don't want to get caught up in a riot."

"Agreed," Riou replied.

A crowd had formed outside the gates, shouting jeers and insults, but there was only a small group of people at the center of the action. Flik muscled his way forward, wondering how in the world he was going to find Fitcher in this. Then he came to the open space at the center of the crowd and found that question answered.

A group of five men, all relatively young, were shoving a sixth among them. The sixth man was Fitcher, who was unable to resist.

"You're one of those stinking traitors!" one man shouted.

"Why were you slinking around? Come on, you can tell us." This man was portly, with a scraggly brown beard.

"I'm not a traitor," Fitcher pleaded, trying to regain his balance. "I'm working for Greenhill's best interests!"

"You have a Muse accent," a third man declared, in a nasal tone. "You're one of those bastards from Muse." One of the other men came up behind Fitcher and shoved him hard to the ground.

"Please, stop!" Fitcher begged, before absorbing a kick to the side of his mouth. "I didn't do anything." All five of the men were kicking him now.

Nanami tugged on Flik's sleeve. "Those jerks! We have to stop this. Come on, let's beat them up."

"No," Flik responded. "I'll stop this myself." He fingered his sword. "If this turns bad, I don't want you getting involved. You still have to find Lady Teresa."

"But-"

Flik didn't remain to listen to what Nanami was going to say. He boldly walked out from the onlookers, right up to where the men were kicking Fitcher. "What's going on here? What did this guy do to you?"

The kicking abruptly stopped and the assailants looked warily in Flik's direction. The fat man with the beard testily said, "You're not from Greenhill, so this isn't any of your business. Get out of here, unless you want to get hurt too."

Fitcher, who was bleeding from a kicked nose, looked uncertainly up in Flik's direction. "Maybe I am a stranger," Flik said, "but even I know that Greenhill and Muse are supposed to be allies."

The fat man stabbed a finger at Flik's chest. "Idiot, you don't know anything. If those traitors from Muse weren't here, we'd still be a free city. They stabbed us in the back, and this bastard's one of them."

"Thank the runes," Fitcher declared, recognition in his eyes. He tried to rise, but one of the men shoved him back to the ground. "Fl-"

Flik cut him off with a sharp shake of his head. He didn't want Fitcher blowing his cover here, not with five angry men who were looking for an excuse to get more violent.

Fitcher seemed to understand. "Kind traveler, please, tell these men to stop." The men in question looked darkly from Flik to Fitcher. Telling them to stop wasn't going to work.

Besides, Flik had a different plan in mind. "A traitor," he said scornfully. "One who sold out his allies. He can't be allowed to get away with this!"

The fat man nearest to him smiled. "That's right! You understand us exactly, don't you?"

Fitcher looked piteously towards Flik, who had to struggle to keep anything but disdain from showing on his face. "He deserves to die slowly," Flik judged. "Even a lynching would be over too quickly. What would be best is to stab him in the guts. He'd have a long, painful time to think about his crimes before he died. There'd be a lot of blood, too."

As expected, the thought of actually killing someone, especially with their own hands, caused the assailants to hesitate. The fat man's smile turned into a nervous frown. "Well, I…"

Flik pulled his sword sheath off his belt. "Come on, you want to kill him, don't you? Don't you want everyone to be able to hear his screams, even all the way across the city? Don't you want everyone to know that you were the man who stood up for freedom and justice?"

The fat man suddenly looked very green in the face. Flik stepped past him so that he stood in the circle around Fitcher. He held his weapon out to the others. "Don't any of you want to strike a blow against oppression? Don't any of you want to spill the blood of traitors?"

The men of the circle started backing away from Flik. One of them mumbled, "No thanks, I'm…good."

Now Flik really was feeling disdain and he let that feeling echo in his expression and tone. "I thought there were some real men here, but I guess I was wrong. So be it, I'll cut him down." He drew his blade, letting the sheath rattle on the cobblestones. There was murmuring from the crowd, so he raised his voice to address them all. "People of Greenhill, let me strike a blow against treachery and for justice in your name. I will consummate this act so that no one will ever think of betraying your fair city ever again." He pulled the blade over his head, letting all in the crowd see it glittering in the sun. "Now the traitor dies!"

It wasn't very surprising how few people stayed behind to see the completion of "justice" in their name. The square was nearly empty in under a quarter minute. Unfortunately, it wasn't totally empty. A pair of bored-looking male students stood nearby. They were teenage boys, maybe a year or two older than Riou.

"Do it!" one of them shouted. "Let's see some blood."

The other one nudged his friend. "I know, he should stick his sword right up the other guy's-"

That was when Flik blasted the street in front of them with a bolt of lightning, sending up a spray of rock fragments and creating a loud clap of thunder. The two students put their hands up to cover their faces and ran for the academy.

Then Nanami and Pilika were hugging him tightly. "You did it, Flik!" Nanami cried. "You stopped them!" Flik wanted to tell her not to use his real name, but the others were also speaking.

"Amazing!" Wakaba exclaimed. "I must study that technique for avoiding combat."

"Very cool," Meg said, winking.

"Total luck," Luc remarked.

"It was not," Millie retorted. "Flik's a hero."

"I think so too," Eilie said.

Riou was smiling. "Good job, Flik. Now let's see if we can convince Fitcher of that."

Fitcher had ducked his head when Flik had raised his sword, and was still tucked in a crouch in the middle of the square. "Please, be merciful!"

Flik, managing to disengage himself from Nanami and Pilika, walked over to Fitcher and tapped him lightly with his boot. "Yo, Fitcher, you can get up any time you like."

Cautiously, Fitcher looked up. "I'm still alive?" Flik nodded, at which point Fitcher jumped up to embrace him, kissing him liberally -despite the stubble- on each cheek. "Thank you, thank you, Flik!"

Flik tried to push him away. "It's okay, Fitcher. You don't have to make such a fuss about it."

Riou walked over. "Let's find an out of the way place so Fitcher can give us the news."

Fitcher smacked his forehead. "Oh, yes, right. This way please." He led them out of the square and down several streets leading towards the west. Eventually the streets led them to a wooded park with paths and benches. Fitcher chose a secluded location by an apple tree and sat down on a bench. Riou, Nanami, and Eilie sat down on the bench opposite. Pilika sat on Nanami's lap. Luc, using his wind magic, whisked an apple down for Millie, who exclaimed happily. Wakaba perched herself on one of the branches. Meg sat down on top of Gadget. Flik took a seat next to Fitcher. They waited for him to begin.

First, he sighed. "It's like this everywhere in the city. Old friends are treating me like scum. I can hardly learn anything."

"What do you know?" Flik prompted.

"She's within the city," Fitcher answered, then laughed ruefully. "I learned that from Highland soldiers. It seems the general who took this city has been out scouring the province looking for her, but hasn't found anything. It looks like the group hiding Lady Teresa is very small."

"It's a conspiracy of one," Flik asserted. "Shin. It all comes down to him." He looked over at Riou. "We'll just have to go back to the academy and gather more clues." He turned to address Fitcher. "Fitcher, you be careful too. We don't want something like that to happen again."

Fitcher shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't stay in the city. At this point, I don't know who might try to sell me to the Highlanders. If you find Lady Teresa, meet me at that inn we were at, the night before you entered the city. By the way, this new Highland general is no joke. He'll be coming back to the city in a couple of days. I don't advise being here when he does."

Flik looked down at his feet. Everyone was silent for a minute, then Nanami softly asked, "Where should we be looking?"

Flik had no idea, but he knew that time was running out.


	41. Chapter 41 We Defeated Ourselves

**Chapter 41 – We Defeated Ourselves**

It was late afternoon by the time Flik, Riou, and the others returned to New Leaf Academy. Fitcher had departed quickly after delivering his news. The others had a large lunch at a nearby restaurant, but no one had much to say regarding the search for Lady Teresa. Instead, they talked about the classes that they'd attended and were interested in, much as if they were just another bunch of new students.

Now they were walking down the path leading towards the boys' dorm. Flik was so absorbed in his thoughts that he almost didn't register the sudden shriek.

"Nanami, you're horrible. Why are you standing between me and my Bluto?" It was Nina, directly in front of them on the path, hands on hips, looking exceedingly upset.

"But I'm not standing between you and him," Nanami replied from Flik's side, missing the point of the metaphor.

Flik decided that this was the proper moment for a graceful exit. "Well, Reen, I'll leave this for you to straighten out." Two steps later he was sprinting away as fast as he could.

Nina shrieked again. "Wait, my Bluto! Why do you flee true love? I don't bite, not unless you ask me to."

He risked a glance back over his shoulder. Nina was racing after him, her legs flashing in the sunlight as she tried to keep pace. Persistently, she chasing him all over the campus before Flik's superior training began to tell and she fell out of sight. After several quick turns and even going into the forest, he finally slowed down. Breathing hard, he leaned against a tree and swallowed several deep gulps of air.

"Are you ready to move her, if it comes to that?" a female voice asked. Flik nearly jumped, then put his hand over his racing heart as a calming measure and peeked around a tree in the direction of the conversation.

"Things are proceeding more slowly than expected." Flik could hardly believe his eyes. It was Shin, and he was speaking with Emilia. "It will take a couple more days."

Emilia sighed. "You may not have much time. The Highland commander is returning soon, and his searchers are getting closer and closer. If we don't act before they find her, all of our advantages will be lost. Then what'll we have to work with?"

Shin shook his head. "No one will get to her and live, I swear it. Things will work out for the best."

Emilia looked nervously at her surroundings. Flik had to duck back behind the tree to avoid being noticed. "Okay," she answered. "Now listen, I've had to post guards at the administration building because of the recent incidents. You'll have to use the passage under the boys' dormitory when you go back."

"Fine." The discussion ended with that. Emilia walked back towards the school, heading in Flik's direction. He edged around the tree. When she was gone, he looked back to where Shin had been. Shin had disappeared, leaving no evidence of his departure, but Flik was unconcerned. He knew where the warrior would have to go eventually.

Flik did not return to his room, electing to head for the dorm immediately. He hid in the underbrush at the edge of the forest and watched the building. The sun set, but the Blue Moon, nearly full, rose quickly afterwards, giving Flik a little light to work with. Still, he almost didn't see Shin when he appeared, creeping along the side of the building until he got to the north end. The dorm was three stories high, but the first and second stories extended out beyond the third. Flik watched as Shin climbed up to the roof of the second story and walked along the top to a window, which he entered.

Running full speed, Flik was over by the dorm in a few seconds. A number of crates had been piled together, allowing him to jump and pull himself onto the roof. He dreaded every noise his steps made, but quickly walked over to the window and entered. Not unexpectedly, the room he entered was completely dark. It was also filled with things he could not see, but did blunder into, including the walls. A number of wooden stick-things clattered around him, and he stepped into some sort of metal pail.

Finally finding the door, Flik wrenched it open and stepped out of the closet. A number of mop handles followed him out, falling on the floor. Frustrated, he kicked the pail off his foot, listening to it echo down the hall. It was only then that he realized he needed to be quiet. He took a few breaths and carefully used his rune to create a light.

There were stairs leading down, which Flik descended. He didn't stop to explore the second story, reasoning that Shin was looking for an underground entrance. On the first floor, he hesitated. A man was sitting at the check-in desk, his back to Flik, with a lantern providing illumination. Then Flik heard the snoring and figured that the guard was asleep. He walked out into the room.

Two halls led to more rooms, but the door directly behind the guard opened to another set of stairs going down, which Flik took. They led to a cluttered basement, full of boxes and barrels stacked upon each other. There was no sign of Shin, but Flik decided that this must be the room with the passage. Nothing else made any sense.

He didn't see anything obvious, so he looked more thoroughly. A set of five candle fixtures mounted on the far wall caught his attention. He examined them carefully. Four of the five were covered in dust, but the middle one showed evidence of recent use. He fiddled with it, trying to pull it out, push it in, and turn it to the left. The fixture did not move. At last, when he turned the fixture to the right, it gave, and, with the grinding of gears, a section of the wall opened up, revealing the passage.

Flik ran in, and the portal slammed back in place behind him. With the light generated by the rune, he could clearly see Shin's footprints in the dust of the corridor. Flik followed them, bypassing side routes as they opened up. He was amazed at the complexity of the underground system. He wondered if the people who built the academy had made them or if they'd simply constructed the buildings over the passages.

Suddenly, Shin's footprints broke into a run. It was obvious that he'd heard Flik enter the passage. Flik picked up his pace. After a few more minutes, he came to a dead end. Shin's prints ran straight to the wall. Flik felt along the stones, looking for a latch or switch to make it open. He found it, and the secret entrance slid noisily aside.

The room Flik entered was very much like the room in the boys' dorm, right down to the wall fixtures. The secret wall slid back into place. Flik paused only one moment more to ascertain his surroundings and then started up the steps out of the room. They led up to a narrow hall with paneled wooden walls. He walked down this until it opened up into a larger room that was the meeting point of several halls and a set of large stairs.

Flik remembered this place. He was back in the administration building. There was a faint light emanating from the hall directly opposite from him. Even as he registered its presence, the light winked out. Flik crept across the room, heading for the opposite hallway. It was in this place that Jeane had accosted him two nights ago. He pulled his sword out, steeling himself for the confrontation. Now he'd learn just what Shin was up to. Stepping away from the wall, he-

"Now!" a girl's voice commanded. "Get the ghost!" It was Nanami's speaking.

"Ghost, you won't escape the fury of Master Long Chan-Chan's martial arts!" another girl cried out.

Flik turned back just in time to see the foot and leg of Wakaba coming right at him. Her foot hit his chest, breaking his concentration on the lightning rune, and toppling him onto his back in the darkness. Somewhere along the way his sword fell out of his hand. Flik counted himself a strong warrior, but even he could not resist the five forms that overcame him, quickly pinning his legs and arms onto the ground.

"You're going to pay for scaring me like that in the library," Meg shouted. Then her tone changed. "Hey, this ghost's leg is pretty muscled." She started feeling at it.

"His arm's pretty good too," Millie declared, running her hands up that limb.

"Don't tell me you're feeling up the ghost," Luc complained. "Why am I even here?

"Flesh detected," Gadget declared. "It is not a ghost."

Nanami growled. "If it's not a ghost, then what is it, a zombie?"

That was enough for Flik. "Would you all get off of me? I'm not a ghost, or ghoul, or a zombie! Have you gone insane?"

Light blossomed by Flik's face. Riou knelt down, his Bright Shield Rune shining. The girls stared wondrously at him, even Pilika's face registering surprise. "Flik, why are you here?' Meg asked.

"You're supposed to be calling me Bluto," Flik answered uselessly.

"I get it," Nanami exclaimed. "Flik's been wandering around the campus every night like a ghost. That explains the noises we've been hearing, and what happened with Meg in the library." Then Nanami frowned. "Flik, why would you be going around scaring people?"

With an effort, Flik managed to pull himself up into a sitting position. "I'm not going around scaring people. I'm trying to follow Shin. He knows where Lady Teresa is, and I was hoping he'd lead me to her. I was about to get the jump on him when you all showed up."

Nanami smiled triumphantly. "And we caught the ghost!"

"You caught me, not some ghost!"

Wakaba stood up and pointed down the hall. "So he's just ahead, right? Let us gather our chi and startle him with a powerful kiai!"

Flik had no idea what she was talking about. "Uh, sure." He stood up and retrieved his weapon. With a gesture, he led the way around the corner to confront Shin. As before, the end of the hallway was empty except for the bust.

"A dead end," Luc announced. "Splendid work, oh great investigator."

Nanami hugged Pilika tightly. "You think he walked right through the wall? Maybe he really is a ghost."

"Not likely." Flik tried to reason it out. "It's probably another secret passage. There's got to be a switch somewhere. We need to look for it."

Luc stared at the ground. "This is just too sad."

"Shut up and search," Flik commanded, as he was feeling along the wall.

"How are we going to find it?" Eilie asked. "We don't even know what to look for."

"It's got to be a clockwork mechanism," Meg answered. "There should be evidence of gears or moving parts."

"As long as he isn't a ghost," Nanami said warily. "Not that I believed he was a ghost, but-"

At this point, Riou walked over and turned the bust a quarter turn to the right. The wall to Flik's right slid away, revealing a path out into the night air. "I believe this is what we're searching for."

Nanami hugged him. "That's my Riou, the coolest little brother you could ask for."

Flik covered his consternation with a cough. "Yeah. Um, good job, Reen."

Riou shrugged. "You don't need to call me that here. We've already told Wakaba everything."

Wakaba waved cheerily. "Hi, Flik."

He sighed. "Okay. Let's do what we've come here to do. It's time to find Lady Teresa." Flik led them out of the building, down a grassy path that led into the trees. For the first time in a few days, the air was warmer and muggier. The sweat from Flik's exertions beaded on his forehead.

As they walked deeper into the forest, the trees started to loom overhead, crowding both the night and the path. Flik strained his ears, listening for noises, but heard little other than the night insects. Still, there was something foreboding about the atmosphere.

"Careful," Luc admonished. "There's some sort of magic-"

That was when the vines appeared, dropping out of the foliage, writhing as if they were alive. Flik's sword was out, chopping at two as they came close. They tangled with his blade, wrapping around it and refusing to be cut. More vines were twisting in his direction.

"Switching to attack mode," Gadget announced to no one in particular.

Wakaba ran forward, snatched one of the vines and pinned it under her foot.

Meanwhile, Millie was screaming, "Get them away from me!"

Flik wanted to aid her, but he had enough trouble struggling to keep the vines from disarming him. With his sword firmly gripped, he cast lightning magic straight up the blade. The vines at the other end exploded into pieces, which rained down all around him.

Eilie cast a spear of fire at one of the vines, causing it to become fully engulfed. It swung erratically through the fight, threatening to burn both friend and foe. Then a white dome of light expanded from Riou, driving the attacking foliage back. "Form a circle," he shouted. They did so, Meg having just finished cutting Millie's legs free. Pilika stood silently in the center of the formation, protected by all.

An instant later, Riou released his hold on the spell, and the dome vanished. Flik shifted his sword stance, but for the moment, the vines hung out of sword range, making no move to attack. He could feel the others tensing nervously, trying to anticipate what was coming. Then he felt something brush up against his shin.

Millie shrieked. "My leg, they're on my leg!"

Surprising himself with his calmness, Flik looked down and noted the vine snaking up past his knee. He jammed his sword into the ground, right where the vine had emerged, and managed to sever the creeper.

"Ice," Luc shouted. "One of you girls with a water rune, freeze the ground!" Meg and Nanami quickly did so, circles of frost appearing where their palms touched the ground. Millie was a touch slower, but the effect was much greater. Ice coated the grass and vines, running out to the edge of the path and part way up the trunks of the nearest trees. Flik had barely managed to pull his sword out of the ground before the ice would've trapped it there. The group had one moment of relief before more of the vines slithered out of the branches overhead.

"I've got them," Luc announced. A vortex of wind circled around the beleaguered group, kicking up branches and shards of ice. It grew in intensity, until Flik could hear large branches breaking and the trunks of the trees groaning and cracking in protest. The outer wall of the cyclone was filled with bits of vine, branches, and leaves. Finally, Luc let the tempest subside. "Done."

Debris rained down on them. Flik blew a leaf off of his nose. "Nice going. Now everybody within a couple of miles will know something happened here."

"All the more reason we should hurry," Riou said. "Let's keep going."

They walked down the path for another half-mile, nervous and twitchy. More than a few times Millie or Nanami or Eilie would jump at some sudden noise. Even Flik felt his hand tense over his sword hilt more than once. In fact, the only one of them who seemed to be stoic about the matter was Pilika, but it was hard for Flik to tell, since she rarely made any noise. Eventually the path opened out to a larger clearing. At the other side of the clearing, in the shadows, Flik thought he saw a small cabin.

He pointed it out to Riou. "What do you think? It looks suspicious."

Nanami answered for her brother. "Looks like the ghost's haunted shack!"

"Why would a ghost need a house?" Wakaba asked.

"This is getting ridiculous," Flik muttered. "Let's see what's inside, and be careful."

Before he'd taken two steps, a figure appeared at the door of the cabin and confidently moved to confront them. In the light provided by the two moons, Flik could easily see that it was Shin, his spider sword already drawn.

"I'd been expecting you sooner or later," Shin declared. "Unfortunately, my lady is not quite ready to leave this place."

Flik brought his hands out to his side. "Listen, we'd just like to-"

"Silence!" Shin interrupted.

"We're not your enemies," Riou said.

"I cannot trust you," Shin answered. "I cannot consider you an ally. And, since you have seen this place, I cannot let you leave here alive." Several of the girls gasped at this statement.

Flik unsheathed his sword. "Do you really mean to kill all of us? I won't hesitate to fight back if you attack."

"I do not fear you." Shin began advancing, the point of his sword settling in Flik's direction. "My blade shall cut you down."

Any hesitation that Flik might've felt evaporated, his brain readying muscles and long trained skills for use. "Don't think that I plan to lose, buddy."

Nanami suddenly grabbed Flik's arm, attempting to restrain him. "I don't want you two to fight!" Flik glanced sharply down at her eyes, intending to rebuke her, but before the words had left his mouth, Pilika started crying. He looked back at Shin. Even the hardened warrior couldn't maintain his grim façade in the face of a girl's tears.

"Why did it have to be children?" Shin muttered.

Another figure emerged from the house, tentatively walking towards the confrontation. It took Flik a few moments to realize that this was Lady Teresa. She was wearing the same long green skirt and blue blouse that she'd worn at the Hilltop Conference. However, she seemed to lack the fire that she'd had at that meeting. The moonlight made her look very haggard. "Shin, you have done enough," she said wearily. "Let there be no more violence for my sake."

Shin made no move to sheathe his blade, so Flik decided to act first, putting his weapon away. He bowed towards Teresa. "You misunderstand. We're not here to capture you, but only to speak with you. I am Flik of the Blue Lightning, serving in the New State Army. Please, listen to what our leader, Riou, has to say."

Riou walked up beside Flik, looking Teresa in the eyes. "I've wanted to talk to you about Greenhill, about Highland, and about stopping Luca Blight."

Teresa did not meet Riou's stare. "I have some idea of what you want to say, but let's talk in the cabin. I don't think any of us wish to feed the insects longer than we have to."

They walked towards the dwelling, Shin and Teresa slightly ahead of the others. Flik could barely hear Shin admonish Teresa, "How do you know they speak the truth? This could still be a Highland trap."

Teresa whispered harshly, "I am tired of suspecting everyone. Does it really matter who they are at this point?"

The interior of the cabin was one room with a bed, a table, some chairs, and an iron range. Teresa took a seat at one of the chairs. Flik and Riou sat down at the two others. Shin remained at Teresa's side. The others found places to sit where they could: on the bed or on the floor.

In the weak light provided by a lamp, Flik could see that Teresa's face was smudged and dirty, that her blond hair hadn't been washed recently. She looked at Flik at Riou calmly. "So, Lord Riou, why have you gone through all the trouble of coming out here to see me?"

Riou smiled amicably. "We wish to help free you from Highland and we seek your help in freeing all of Jowston."

"Why? What have I to offer?"

"The position of the New State Army is still precarious," Flik answered. "Even with help from Two River, we are not ready to fight against the bulk of Highland's forces. Your strength would greatly help us, Lady Teresa."

"My strength?" She sighed heavily. "No, what you want is for me to lead the people of Greenhill in another battle." Now she closed her eyes and did not open them. "I am sorry, Lord Riou, but I will not be able to help you."

Flik's jaw tightened in frustration. Surprisingly, he could see the same emotion reflected in Shin's eyes. It was Riou who asked the obvious question. "Why won't you help us?"

"I am no longer the acting mayor of Greenhill. I abandoned my citizens, left them to be occupied by Highland, and fled here. How can I ask anyone to follow me now?" Tears began to form in her eyes, and she had to blink before continuing. "Besides, I don't think I could take another battle like that. I can't ask people to die for me again."

"Nobody's really said anything about what happened," Riou stated. "Please, tell us, how did Highland manage to take the city?"

"I suppose you deserve to know, though telling it pains me." She stared straight at Riou, her eyes never drifting off of him as she began her story. "Lord Riou, you have obviously led men in battle, but have you ever lost a battle because of the mistakes that you made? The first I heard of Muse falling was when the remnants of the Greenhill Rangers limped back to the city, in late Mai. Highland scouts had followed them and occupied the roads leading east towards Muse. It was at that point that I knew we would have to defend the city. We scrounged up old weapons and rune scrolls, drilled the citizens into a militia, and somehow managed to repel the first Highland attack."

Teresa smiled bitterly. "We thought we had won a great victory, and our spirits rose even more when some soldiers from Muse arrived, ready to help us. They'd been held captive by Highland, but were released and even given their weapons back. I don't know that anybody truly thought about why Highland would do that. We just assumed that one of the Highland commanders wanted a fair battle."

She sniffed. "How very naïve I was. Soon after that, I guess it would've been around the turning of the month, a larger Highland force arrived. They did not attack as I thought they would, but began a siege. I should've realized then what the enemy's plan was. You see, Greenhill has never had a lot of surplus food, and nobody ever thought that Highland would ever get this far west, so we didn't have much in reserve. With the addition of the Muse soldiers, that reserve dwindled even more quickly. We began to argue over tactics and distributing rations. The Muse soldiers wanted to go out and to fight the enemy, but I worried that our forces weren't trained enough for a pitched battle. Later, the Muse soldiers said that they should be getting more food, that the citizens they were protecting should sacrifice a little."

"I think I see where this is going," Flik interjected.

"Do you?" Teresa replied heatedly. "Well I didn't. Not until the Muse soldiers took possession of the storehouses did I realize the depth of the crisis. We were paralyzed after that. Some of my advisors told me to negotiate, some told me to attack the Muse soldiers, and some told me to open the gates to Highland. I even thought of offering myself as a hostage to the Muse soldiers, but none of it mattered in the end. The Highland commander chose that moment of weakness to attack. The fighting was over in the in a few hours, and I-"

She nearly broke down, her voice coming out in a whisper. "You can see what's become of me and of the city. It wasn't the Highland army that defeated us, but we defeated ourselves. I have heard how bitter the people have become since then, about the distrust they have for one another. And all of it, every last bit, is because of my lack of foresight."

Her chair scratched along the floor as she stood up and paced away from the table. "So you see, Lord Riou, I can't help you. I couldn't help my own people. I couldn't even save myself without help from my minders. Please, Lord Riou, do not seek my aid. Go home and fight the Highlanders, for as long as you can stomach people dying for your cause. I cannot."

Flik shared a look with Riou, wondering if the youth had any arguments that might sway Teresa. Her mood seemed to have penetrated into Flik's mind, smothering out hope. Even the room appeared to be darker, the light in the lamp wavering on some unfelt breeze.

Riou stood up and nodded. "I see. I won't trouble you further this night, but I hope I'll be able to speak with you again in the future." His eyes took in Flik and the others. "I think it's time to leave. There's nothing more we can do here."

Teresa remained with her back to them. Shin escorted them out into the muggy night. "You should not return to this place. That will only draw unwanted attention. If the Highland army discovers Lady Teresa's whereabouts through your fault, I swear I will hunt you down."

Flik took the threat in stride. "You're Lady Teresa's bodyguard, right? What are your plans? You can't stay here forever."

"My will is Lady Teresa's will," Shin answered seriously. "We will stay here as long as she wishes it." He had led them to the edge of the clearing. Without any further words, he turned and walked back towards the cabin. Dejectedly Flik and the children retraced their steps down the path leading towards the academy. Nobody spoke for quite some time.

Finally Nanami murmured, mostly to herself, "All of this work for nothing, I guess."

Flik shook his head, reflecting on all that he'd done in Greenhill. "I don't think we can force her to change her mind."

"Hush!" Luc whispered. "Someone…powerful waits just ahead."

They'd returned to the spot where the vines had attacked them. It was still a mess. The trees in the area were stripped of leaves and many branches were strewn about. The icy ground was already turning slushy and muddy.

Then Flik noticed the woman who was silently observing the area. The moonlight reflecting off her skin showed her to be Jeane. She looked up, saw them, and smiled. "There are very few who could break through one of my traps, but now I find myself in the presence of several at once. How very interesting."

"Go away!" Luc shouted harshly. "I don't need your attention."

Jeane laughed and turned her attention to Flik and Riou. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

Riou couldn't answer for a moment, but stood, stunned by her presence. Flik didn't blame him. Even having met her before, he was still awed.

"Don't stare at her!" Nanami chided. "Come on, she's not worth our time."

"I know about the boy, little girl. Why don't you let him speak?" Nanami flinched as if struck, her tongue silenced against her will. Jeane turned her gaze back on Riou. "Go ahead, answer my question."

Riou managed to stammer, "I met Lady Teresa."

"And?"

"She will not work with us," he finished.

Only the tiniest of frowns flickered on Jeane's face. "Then you will just have to wait for a better moment. Do not fear, she has a dedicated defender in Shin, and I don't intend on seeing her captured either. She will still be free when she finally comes to her senses. Well, if you will excuse me." Jeane departed, walking gracefully in the direction of the administration building.

"The nerve of that witch!" Nanami exploded, loosed from the magic hold.

"Now what?" Flik asked Riou.

"We can't stay any longer. Flik, as much as it pains me to say this, we must accept our failure here. Make the arrangements for our departure tomorrow, please. We'll just have to wait for a change in her heart."

Flik looked up at the night sky. How many failures could they afford against the likes of Luca Blight?


	42. Chapter 42 If You Lose Heart

**Chapter 42 – If You Lose Heart**

Flik awoke next morning refreshed and at ease. He was disappointed in their failure to sway Lady Teresa to their cause, but he no longer had to worry about searching for her or playing a part. He looked at the rose robe, gauntlets, sash, and collar. There was only one thing that he still had to do. Donning the clothing, he left the attendants' lodge for the last time, walking down the paths until he stood before the administration building. The sky was overcast, and warm, misty drizzle hung in the air. It was shaping up to be a miserable travel day.

Inside, Emilia was the secretary on duty, sitting at the desk in the foyer. She smiled cheerfully as Flik entered. "Good morning, Bluto. What may I help you with?"

"I would like to withdraw Master Reen and his companions from enrollment at the New Leaf Academy."

Emilia's expression didn't falter. "I'm sorry to hear that. Is there any particular reason for the change of heart?"

Shaking his head, Flik answered, "I'm afraid our reasons are personal."

Emilia pulled some papers out of her desk. "I see. Then I take that to mean that you managed to meet with Lady Teresa. Did she give you the answer you were looking for?"

Flik nearly forgot himself and only just refrained from drawing his sword. "That…was never our purpose."

Giggling, Emilia responded, "There's no need to lie. Master Reen told me his purpose two days ago. I too want to see Lady Teresa safe and Greenhill free."

Flik chewed the inside of his lip. How did Riou know that it was safe to confide in this person? Finally he said, "Lady Teresa refused to work with us."

Emilia's smile faded. "I hope you'll forgive her. All we can do is keep her safe until the right moment. Now, if you'll just fill out these papers, we can have you on your way."

There were more forms than Flik expected. It seemed the academy, once they had a potential student, was loath to let the student depart. When the papers were completed, there was also a small potch transaction to cover the three days that Riou and the others had boarded at the school. Afterwards, Flik walked back out into the drizzle to wait for Riou at the fountain. The children were not long in coming. He could hear them talking before he saw them.

Nanami waved cheerfully as they came into view. "Good morning, Flik!"

They gathered around the fountain. Flik looked at Riou and asked, "Does everyone have everything? I don't think we'll be back here for some time."

Riou nodded. "We have everything."

"What about you, Flik?" Meg asked, chuckling. "Did you get a chance to kiss Nina goodbye?" Nanami frowned, looking intently at him.

"I told you, I'm not interested in her," Flik replied. "Besides, I haven't seen her since yesterday." He paused for a moment, wondering if he'd offended Nina to the point where she was ignoring him. "I don't care," he said out loud. Noticing the looks the others were giving him, he coughed. "Come on, time to go."

They walked down to the stables, where Flik paid out some more potch to retrieve their horses. Nightstar bumped her nose against his chest in greeting, followed by trying to take a playful nip at him when he grabbed the reins. He jumped out of the way in time and looked back to see the mare giving him an astonishingly innocent face. Once they were out of the stables, Flik decided that they should lead their horses, as the cobblestones were slick with moisture. He was anticipating a leisurely stroll through the streets of Greenhill, but it didn't turn out that way. A large crowd had formed in the square beyond the academy gates.

"What's going on?" Nanami asked. "You think they're going to beat someone up again?"

Flik craned his neck, trying to see what was happening up front. "I don't know. I hope not." The crowd appeared to be restless, people shifting back and forth. A gap opened up, and he could see that there was a squad of Highlanders at the other end of the square. Their leader was Rowd.

"Listen carefully!" Rowd shouted. "Prince Luca Blight of Highland decrees that whosoever captures or provides information leading to the capture of Lady Teresa, former acting mayor of Greenhill, shall receive the boon of twenty thousand potch and the right of Highland citizenship."

Several people in the crowd shouted insults and obscenities, but others had more thoughtful expressions on their faces. "Twenty thousand potch and citizenship," Flik murmured. "It'll only be a matter of time before the temptation gets to someone."

Pilika gasped, bringing Flik's attention back to the crowd. A new figure was approaching from the Highland side. All of a sudden he recognized the newcomer, but his mind did not want to believe it.

"Pilika, what's the matter?" Nanami asked. Then she exclaimed in surprise, as well. "No! This…it must be a lie."

It wasn't. Though his attire -a white coat, black pants, a white boots- was different, there was no mistaking his face. This was Jowy Atreides, who'd been part of the Unicorn Brigade, who'd fought with the mercenaries, who'd allegedly killed Anabelle. Now he walked confidently towards Rowd, who was yelling at the crowd.

"Impudent idiots! Why won't you do as you're told?"

Jowy stepped neatly in front of Rowd, interrupting his tirade. The mob quieted, waiting to hear what the newcomer would say. "Citizens of Greenhill, hear my words. Any person who has suffered injury or damages due to unlawful searches by Highland troops should present himself at the office of the commander in order to receive compensation. Know that the responsible parties have been punished." He directed a meaningful look in Rowd's direction. "The reward for finding Lady Teresa has been issued directly from Prince Luca Blight. I swear by my own life that those promises will be honored."

The crowd began to murmur again. Jowy held out his hands for silence. "However, there is one condition. Lady Teresa must be delivered alive and in good condition. We wish to work with her to restore a working government for the people of Greenhill. Therefore, no reward will be given for a corpse."

Thoughts and question jostled for position in Flik's mind. Were Jowy and the commander who took this city one and the same? The reward was good, and Jowy's words about wanting to work with Lady Teresa would definitely sway people. Something brushed against Flik's leg, and Nanami gave a startled yell. He looked up just in time to see Pilika dart between two people in the back of the crowd. She was heading for Jowy.

"Hold on!" Flik shouted, but was jostled as Nanami ran past him, chasing the girl. "Damn it, come back here, brat!" He wasn't sure which girl he meant, though it really didn't matter now.

Riou was at his side. "We have to follow her!"

Flik held back his sigh. "Agreed." He tossed his reins to Luc. "Hold these. Nobody else come after us, but be prepared to move."

They plunged into the crowd, Flik judiciously elbowing people out of the way. People began yelling angrily, drawing Rowd's notice. "What is going on here?" Too late, Flik could see Pilika standing before Jowy. Nanami ran up and grabbed her hand. "Who's this little girl?" Rowd demanded.

Pilika held up her free hand in Jowy's direction, but he couldn't meet her gaze. Flik and Riou finally got to the head of the throng. Rowd's eyes narrowed in recognition. "You, I've seen you before."

Riou ignored him, turning his attention to his best friend. "Jowy, why are you…did you really-"

He wasn't able to ask a complete question. Jowy turned away, refusing to acknowledge Riou. Rowd did. "Hey! That's the traitor from Highland. Soldiers, arrest them!"

Another voice shouted, "They're spies! Grab them and you will be rewarded." Flik thought it might be Fitcher, but didn't have time to work it out. Riou took Nanami's hand, pulling both her and Pilika away from the Highlanders. Flik leveled his elbow and shoulder at an approaching townsman, knocking him back into a half-dozen of his fellows.

Highland soldiers jumped into the jam, but so did more citizens, eager for a chance to make some potch. In the confusion, Flik managed to clear the path back to the others. He mounted Nightstar and surveyed the situation. The Highlanders were rapidly reestablishing order and a squad of them was approaching his position.

"Let's get back to the academy," Flik shouted.

The guards at the gate did not hinder their progress, but scattered when Flik rode up. He dismounted and pulled the gate open, allowing the others to ride through. As he got back up in the saddle, the squad of pursuing Highlanders arrived. He drew his sword, intending to buy Riou enough time to escape, but the enemies suddenly stopped, their mouths wide open.

Flik turned, hearing a faint buzzing at the edge of his consciousness, and saw Jeane leaning against the gate. She smiled at him. "I wouldn't waste time staring, if I were you. More of them will be coming, and I don't intend to stand here all day." He started, his head instantly clear, and got Nightstar moving. As he passed Jeane, she looked at him and asked, "What will you do now?"

He hadn't planned that far ahead, but an idea popped into Flik's head. "We'll need to get Lady Teresa. She won't be safe for much longer."

"A most admirable plan. I suppose I shall have to go to Dunan Castle as well. It just wouldn't do to shirk destiny and make _her_ mad, now would it?"

Flik had no clue as to who Jeane was talking about, but he didn't stay to find out. He found Riou and the others waiting for him a little ways up the path. "Are you okay?" Nanami asked.

"Delayed by some Highlanders, that's all. There are more coming; we can't go back by the gate."

Nanami suddenly looked as though she were going to cry. "Flik, why would Jowy be with the Highland army?"

He sighed, glancing over his shoulder to check on the pursuit, then looked back at Nanami. "It's hard to believe, but he must be the commander that Fitcher was talking about. We need to keep moving. I, for one, don't want to get caught."

"Let's use the secret passage," Meg suggested. "We can escape through the woods."

"I agree," Flik said. "We need to get Teresa, too. We can't let her be used as a pawn by Highland."

They continued on down paths that were mostly empty, trotting for the administration building. The drizzle had ended, but the sky remained clouded over. At the entrance to the administration building, they dismounted and walked their horses in. Flik had not looked forward to trying to explain the situation to Emilia, but she was not at her desk, so he didn't have to. He led them down one of the halls leading to the back of the building.

Halfway down the hall, the door for the head of the history department swung open and an old man with a generous helping of gray hair confronted them. "Oh dear, oh dear! Have I wandered into the stables again? I thought for sure that this was my office, but here you come leading horses down the hall."

Flik put a hand on his shoulder. "You're in the right building, sir. We're just on our way to see Lady Teresa."

The professor didn't bat an eye. "Well, give her my regards. And tell her that she needs to do something about the leak in the second floor study hall."

Nodding, Flik answered, "Sure, I will."

The old man didn't seem to hear him, mumbling, "Did I have a class to teach? Confound it, I was supposed to be giving them a test today!" He ambled back into his office and shut the door.

Flik walked Nightstar to the back of the building and down the hall to the dead end. When the bust was turned, the secret door slid open once more. Outside, they remounted and trotted down the trail in the direction of the cabin. They went by the site of the previous night's skirmish. The nearby trees were stripped bare and the ground was scored with patches of torn earth.

A few minutes more brought them to the clearing with the cabin. To his surprise, Flik saw that Shin and Teresa were already outside the cabin, speaking with a girl who held the reins to a pair of horses. To his further surprise, he saw that the girl was Nina. He dismounted and walked towards the group.

"You have to go!" Nina exhorted Teresa. "If you stay here, they'll surely find you." Shin glanced sharply at Flik as he drew near, causing Nina to also look. Her expression was amazed. "My Bluto, is that you? Goodness, have you stalked me even here? You're so very persistent."

Nina's presence created so many questions in his mind that Flik temporarily forgot about Lady Teresa. "Nina, what are you doing here?"

It was Shin who answered, "Nina has been helping us, especially buying us food. I couldn't have done so without drawing unwanted attention."

Nina's expression became serious. "Bluto, why are you here? You shouldn't know about this place."

That brought Flik back to the task at hand. He faced Teresa and sternly said, "We have come to take you to safety. I am afraid that the situation has changed, such that I fear you will soon be discovered. If necessary, I will remove you against your will."

Teresa's answer was cool. "I am well aware of what is happening. Nina already informed me."

"Then let's go!" Nanami interjected, before Flik could voice the same opinion. "Don't you want to get away?"

"No, I don't. I will surrender myself to Highland. I do not want anyone else suffer for my sake. Once Highland has me, things will be peaceful again. I must believe that."

Shin gave the tiniest of frowns at those words. Nina's mouth opened in shock, her voice rising as she argued, "Wait, you can't just-"

Teresa walked forward, taking the reins of one of the horses from Nina's hands. She glanced wearily in Riou's direction. "I am sorry, Lord Riou, but I cannot be of any help to you."

Flik moved to block her path. "Do you think I'm going stand by while you turn yourself over to the enemy? I don't want to hurt you, but-"

He might've expected a move from Shin, but the knife in Teresa's hand was a complete surprise. She had it pointed at her heart. "Step aside, or I will take my own life."

For one moment, the perverse thought ran through Flik's head that he should permit her to do that. At least she would not become a captive of Highland. Angrily, he quashed the aberrant idea. As much as it might hurt the New State Army, it was preferable to him that she surrender to the enemy than commit suicide. He yielded, and she walked her horse past him.

Shin quickly snatched the reins to the other horse and followed the former mayor. "My lady, allow me to fulfil my duties one last time."

Teresa stopped and looked back, her face very sad. "Yes. Please bear witness to what is to come." They mounted, and their horses walked from the clearing, heading back towards the administration building.

No one spoke, until Flik, overcome with bitterness, asked, "Why do you go meekly into slavery? Isn't freedom better?"

"I won't allow it," Nina cried. "You fought harder than any of us. We all knew that the situation was perilous, but you kept our spirits up. Even after the food ran low, you didn't want there to be blood between allies. How can I stand by and let you be shackled?" She sprinted after them, vanishing into the forest.

Nanami shook her head. "What are we waiting for? This isn't finished yet! Let's go after them."

"Right," Riou said. "As long as we don't give up hope, we can keep trying to make things come out in our favor." He looked at Flik, who couldn't help but be buoyed by the words. Flik got back on Nightstar and turned her in pursuit.

They did not overtake Teresa and Shin before making it back to the administration building. Once again they dismounted and led the horses through the hall. No one challenged them this time. Outside, they found Lady Teresa by the fountain. She had dismounted and was faced by Rowd and two squads of Highland soldiers.

"You wish to surrender?" Rowd asked. "Well then, allow me to thank you for saving us the trouble of having to find you. That was very polite." He started laughing at his own wit. Teresa remained stoically silent. When Rowd realized that no one else was laughing, he abruptly gestured at one of his soldiers. "Apprehend the former mayor and her associate."

Shin's sword slid free from its sheath, his horse coming forward to block the Highland soldiers. "What is the meaning of this?" Rowd shouted. "Do you dare resist the Highland Army?"

Shin's response was emphatic, "While I am alive, I will never let you lay your filthy hands on Lady Teresa!"

"Shin, why are you doing this? Please, stop," Teresa begged. "The House of Wisemail has fallen, and I am no longer acting mayor. There is no reason for you to die for me."

Shin looked back at Teresa. Even from a distance, Flik could see the pain in his eyes. Red rage showed on Rowd's face. "Get them both! If they resist, restrain them by force!"

"It's time to help!" Nanami exclaimed. She and Riou mounted, trotting towards the action.

Flik also got on his horse, glancing back at the others. "Luc, you're with me. The rest of you, stay back and keep Pilika away from the fighting." He and Luc went after Nanami and Riou.

Rowd sneered at their arrival. "More fools who wish to enter Highland custody? Perfect! Sergeant, take them all."

The Highland soldiers fanned out, a combination of men with spears and crossbows. Flik plunged into the melee, his sword banging down on the helmet of closest enemy, stunning him long enough for Flik to deliver a stab at his face. Shin's blade flashed, cutting easily through the chain mail of another Highlander. Riou's tonfar crunched off the helmet of yet another, dropping the soldier back first onto the ground. Nanami swung her three-part rod, raking the faces of two opponents.

But Flik knew that they were still far outnumbered. Riou nearly fell off his horse dodging a crossbow quarrel. Flik suddenly had three soldiers with spears prodding at him. He forced one back with a thrust of his sword, then used the motion to parry the second soldier's spear. The third stabbed at his left side, the point of the weapon slipping under Flik's gauntlet and scoring up his forearm. Ignoring the pain, Flik swung his sword into his adversary's neck. In his haste, he connected with the flat of the blade, not the edge.

Luc raised his hands and a sharp wind gusted, lifting first one and then a second archer into the air. They slammed back into the ground some distance from the fighting. Shin effortlessly cut the spear and neck of the soldier facing him. Three more soldiers were trying to flank around Riou, but one stumbled, taking a thrown knife in the knee. Another was hit by a fireball and knocked to the ground. The third wisely chose not to continue along that course.

"Get them!" Rowd shouted, slipping behind the next wave of soldiers. Flik glanced beyond Rowd, seeing a crowd of civilians approaching from the square.

Teresa must've seen them too, for she put herself between Flik's group and the Highlanders. "Please, stop fighting! I don't want to be the cause of any more trouble."

There was a lull in the skirmish as both sides watched the developments. Nina appeared at the head of the mob. "Trouble?" she shouted. "Trouble for whom?"

Rowd, from his place in the rear, turned to face the crowd. "You are not authorized to be here. Disperse at once!"

Nina strode confidently towards Rowd. She had a set of books on a strap. Without warning she swung the books right into his groin. "Will you kindly get out of my way?" she asked. Rowd was too distracted to object. Nina continued on, walking past the other Highland soldiers until she was face to face with Teresa. "You can't allow yourself to be captured!" she demanded.

Teresa shook her head. "If Highland has me, then everyone will be able to move beyond the battle and get back to their normal lives. Everyone can be happy finally."

"You think that will make us happy?" Nina asked testily. "Please, Lady Teresa, have faith in us the same way we had faith in you. When you led us in battle, we believed we could win. When our own actions led to our defeat, it wounded our hearts. Do you really think we prefer a tyrant's stability to freedom, even if we have to suffer to get that freedom? If you lose a battle, we will help you fight again. If you lose this city, we will remember freedom until you return. But if you lose heart, what hope will we have that things will ever get better? Please, Lady Teresa, don't lose hope."

The crowd surged forward, several hundred of them, yelling their intention to protect Teresa. There were even soldiers wearing the colors of Muse City. Rowd's men had no choice but to get out the way, pulling the wounded and dead with them.

Tears began to run down Teresa's face. "Why are you doing this for me? I lost the city. I don't deserve your devotion."

Flik suddenly felt the pain from his arm wound. Grimacing, he pulled off the gauntlet to examine the damage. A long, bleeding cut ran up his left arm from just above his wrist nearly to his elbow. Fortunately it wasn't deep. Nanami, who'd been attending to her brother, squeaked in dismay and guided her horse over to Flik.

"You're hurt! Let me heal you, okay?"

For some odd reason, his pride was telling him to refuse. "I'm fine, really. I don't need any help." Nanami grabbed his left arm between her hands, the water rune in her right glowing softly. Flik winced as his forearm felt like it was encased in ice. He noted Nina looking at him with a sour expression on her face. No, she was looking at Nanami with that sour expression.

Then the feeling of ice around his arm was gone. He looked down to see that the limb was unmarked. He flexed his fingers in a quick test to assure himself that everything still worked. Nanami continued to hold his arm.

"Um…thank you, Nanami."

Meanwhile, the crowd had come up all around Lady Teresa, and she was speaking to them. "I understand. I promise that I will keep fighting for my people. I will not stop until I know that you can walk these streets, breathe this air, and speak this city's name in true freedom. I promise that I will return to Greenhill!"

There was movement from the direction of the academy gates. Flik could see that Rowd had returned with a much larger force of men. "It looks like the Highlanders are back. We need to go, now!"

One of the leaders of the crowd shouted, "We need to delay the Highlanders so that Lady Teresa can escape!" They turned about, arming themselves with paving stones, and advanced on Rowd and his men.

Shin had gathered Lady Teresa's horse. He offered the reins to her. "I shall go ahead and clear the path." He trotted his horse back towards the administration building. Flik and the others followed after him, walking their horses through the building for what he hoped would be the last time. He could hear the sound of rioting from the outside.

Once in the forest, Flik guided them down the path in the direction of the cabin. The fighting at the academy grew louder. By the time they arrived at the cabin, it sounded as though some of the Highlanders had broken through in pursuit. Shin was waiting for them in front of the dwelling.

"My lady, we must part here. I will stay behind to hold off the pursuit. I wish you good speed in your escape."

Teresa dismounted. "Please, come with us!"

A group of Highland soldiers entered the clearing from the path. Rowd was leading them. "You won't be going anywhere!" he shouted. "Those stupid civilians might've slowed us up a little, but it changes nothing in the end. You won't escape." Flik could see that there was blood on some of the soldiers' weapons. Naturally enough, Rowd's sword was still sheathed.

"You're terrible!" Nanami yelled.

"Me? You're the ones who caused all of this by resisting. This time I'll kill all of you as soon as you're subdued."

"Go!" Shin commanded, drawing his sword. "On my life, I will not let any of them pass."

"No!" Teresa cried. "No, I don't want you to die."

Shin looked back at her. "My loyalty was never with the office of Mayor, nor with the House of Wisemail, but with you Lady Teresa.

Teresa shook her head. "I'm not leaving you, Shin!"

There was no more time, Flik decided. The Highlanders were only yards away. He dismounted, jogged over to Teresa, and -while mentally begging Odessa to forgive him- punched her in the solar plexus. With a gasp, she fainted into his arms.

Shin didn't look happy, but said, "Thank you."

Flik nodded. "I swear by the name of my blade that I will get Lady Teresa to safety." He carried her over to Nightstar and placed her in the saddle in front of him. He took the reins of her horse and tied them to his saddle's pommel. By this time, Shin was already attacking the foremost of the enemy. Flik glanced at Riou. "Time to go!"

They plunged on down the path, riding past the cabin. At first the way was wide and well defined, but quickly it narrowed and became cluttered with undergrowth, branches and leaves reaching out to slap them as they rode by. Presently, Teresa recovered from her swoon and elbowed Flik in the ribs.

"Let me off!" she ordered. "I'm well enough to ride my own horse."

"Just as long as you don't try anything foolish, like going back to Shin."

Teresa sniffed and made her way over to her horse. When she had mounted, she looked at Riou. "I'm sorry for putting you through all that trouble. I hope we can work together to liberate Greenhill and all of Jowston."

Riou smiled. "What matters is that you wish to help us. With your aid, we will be one step closer to both of our goals."

After that, they continued on in silence. Flik kept glancing back the way they came, trying to determine if he could hear pursuit. Teresa ended up pointing out the paths and, as the day wore on, they turned more and more to the south. The sky had cleared so that Flik could see the westerly sun when they entered a glade in the forest.

"From here the path is easier," Teresa explained. "We are nearly to the road."

"Looks like we made it," Nanami said, relieved.

Flik had no evidence that they were being followed, but was uneasy anyway. "We shouldn't let our guard down. We have a long way to go until we're out of danger."

Pilika suddenly gasped and jumped down from her pony. Immediately she was running across the meadow.

"Pilika!" Nanami shouted. "Come back here!"

Flik was already looking at the person she was running towards. He bit the inside of his lip and drew his sword.

Nanami glanced at Flik and whispered, "Please, no."

Mentally, Flik swore. Of all the people who could've found them, why did it have to be this one?


	43. Chapter 43 All Together Again

**Chapter 43 – All Together Again**

Pilika was hugging Jowy tightly around the waist. After a moment, he reciprocated by placing his arms around the back of her head.

"Jowy," Nanami murmured, and Flik could see tears forming in her eyes.

Jowy looked up from his embrace, eyes focusing on the group confronting him. Carefully he unwound Pilika's arms from around him and walked across the field to meet his friends. "Riou, Nanami…I'm glad to see that you're both well." He spared only a glance for Flik, a simple acknowledgement of his presence. "Lady Teresa, I had hoped to speak with you sooner and under more amicable circumstances."

"You would've done better to have requested the meeting before attacking my city," Lady Teresa answered frostily.

Jowy shrugged his indifference. "Riou, I do not wish to fight you. All I want is to speak with you a bit."

Riou's voice was tight as he asked, "Jowy, why are you working with Highland? Did you really kill Lady Anabelle?"

Sighing, Jowy replied, "Riou, let me give you some advice. Stop this useless struggling, relinquish leadership of the New State Army, and run away. Take Nanami and Pilika and go far away from here."

Riou didn't answer, his mouth clenched shut. Nanami pleaded, "Jowy, why don't you join us? You could ask for forgiveness and come back."

"No," Jowy interrupted. "This war is all but over. In fact, it has been over since the Hilltop Conference. On that day, I saw that the Jowston Alliance was finished. They could do nothing but argue over petty political points. And what now? Do you think you can accomplish anything except to prolong everyone's suffering? Your army cannot defeat Luca Blight."

"So you're saying that we should hand everything over to him?" Flik asked, feeling his anger rising.

Jowy gave him a sharp glance. "I don't intend to let Luca Blight have his way."

"Then please help us," Nanami begged. "I don't want us to fight!"

"We won't have any reason to fight, not if you run away. Riou-"

"No," Riou said. "All of the people around me have sworn to fight by my side until this land is free. How can I abandon my promises just to save myself?"

Jowy shook his head sharply. "It's not you, Riou. It's the Rune. Can't you feel it? My Rune guided me here. It told me that you would come this way. It's the Runes' will that wants us to fight, not our own." Now his tone turned pleading. "Please, Riou, I don't want to fight you, but if you stay with the New State Army, it will happen." Pilika started sniffling, and Nanami looked imploringly at her brother.

Riou's eyes narrowed. "It's my will, Jowy, not the Rune's. I'm not going to let Jowston fall to the people who burned Toto and Ryube, who slaughtered the Unicorn Brigade. I don't want to fight you either, but if we must-"

Pilika's sobbing grew in volume, but it wasn't loud enough to mask the sound of people crashing through the undergrowth from behind Flik. He turned in the saddle and saw distant forms moving among the trees. "Riou, we have to go!"

Jowy sadly stepped aside. "You should start running, Riou. I don't want to see you caught here."

"No!" Nanami shouted. "Jowy, why are you doing this? Why are you taking orders from Luca Blight? Why?"

Riou grabbed the reins to Nanami's horse. "We have to go, Nanami."

"Jowy, please," Nanami sobbed. "I hate this! We're all together again. I don't want to leave him behind." Jowy handed Pilika up to Millie, and then the whole group was underway. Flik kept Nightstar to the rear, his sword drawn, ready to fight off any pursuers. Luckily, no one followed them.

Half an hour later, the path suddenly broke out of the forest, intersecting with the main road away from Greenhill. Flik glanced nervously up and down the highway, but it was clear. "So far, so good. Now we need to get to Dunan Castle."

Teresa sighed. "Someday, I will return."

They followed the road to the south, turning east when it came to another intersection. With the evening deepening, and mindful of Fitcher's instructions, they returned to the inn where they'd spent the night before arriving at Greenhill.

Fitcher was waiting for them, and anxiously bustled them through the back entrance, saying he'd already paid for the lodging. Once they were in a private dining room he relaxed a little. "Things are very confused in the city right now, but I'm glad to see that you got out safely."

Teresa looked overwhelmed by the events of the day. "What do we do now?" she asked.

"Nothing," Fitcher answered. "At least, nothing until tomorrow. Shu has given me very detailed instructions, but all you have to do is head for Two River City." He turned his attention to Flik and Riou, pulling out a pair of bundles. "He also gave me instructions regarding you two." He tossed the bundles onto the table. "These are your normal clothes. Starting tomorrow, you are to travel openly, declaring who you are."

Flik looked at the bundles dubiously. He thought he could see a little bit of blessed blue peeking out from one of the packages. "Are you sure about this?"

"Absolutely. Shu's instructions were very clear on this point."

Nanami perked up. "Do you have my old clothing?"

"Sorry, what you see on the table is all that I have. I guess he didn't think you were important enough." Fitcher held out his hands, palms up.

"Fine," Nanami pouted, "I'm going to bed." She stood up, took Pilika's hand forcefully, and started to walk from the room.

Flik watched her as she slunk off. She appeared to be still upset at the meeting with Jowy. He wondered how Riou was taking it, but, as usual, his face betrayed little. Riou was speaking to Fitcher. "What about you? Are you returning with us?"

Laughing nervously, Fitcher answered, "Oh no, I can't go quite yet. Lord Shu's working me like a kobold. There're a couple more things I've got to take care of, but I should be along pretty quickly."

As unobtrusively as he could, Flik got up from his chair and walked to the door. In her haste to leave the room, Nanami had left it open. He stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him.

The hour was late and most of the inn was dark and locked up for the night. He found Nanami and Pilika sitting at the top of the stairs to the second floor. Moonlight from a hall window revealed that her cheeks were wet. She looked up at Flik when he started up the stairs.

"You all right?" he asked.

"I'm fine."

He knew she was not. "You want to talk about Jowy?"

Nanami stared at him for a full minute before speaking. "They're going to fight each other," she whispered. "I know it. I saw how my brother looked when he said he wouldn't run. What'll I do if one or both of them end up hurt or dead? I can't stop thinking about it." She started crying again.

He took another hesitant step, unsure of what he could do. He didn't know if he was going to place his hand on her shoulder, or put an arm around her, or hug her. He never got the chance. On the third step, he was aware of someone else entering the room. He glanced back and saw the vague outline of Riou.

"Nanami, what's the matter?"

She got to her feet, flew down the stairs, and hugged her brother, crying on his shoulder. But she stopped as soon as the others arrived. Millie asked, "Are you okay?"

Nanami stepped back from Riou. "I'm okay. It's been a long day and I guess I'm a little emotional. That's all."

There was nothing further to discuss, so they retired to their rooms. The following morning, Flik dressed himself in his familiar clothes. He spared one last look at his Falenan attire, thinking about what he ought to do with the stuff. Burning the garments came to mind. In the end he left them in the room. Anyone who truly desired to inflict that kind of humiliation on himself was welcome to the clothes.

Riou had also changed back into his normal attire. Nanami was in her short green dress. The party sat down for a quick breakfast. While eating, Flik kept a careful eye on Nanami. She seemed happy enough this morning, even talking cheerfully to Meg, but he wondered how much was genuine. Another person he was worried about was Teresa, who appeared to be preoccupied by something, and not eating much of her food. He sighed. He'd be glad when the return trip was over.

As they departed, Flik found that a crowd of more than fifty people, men and women, had gathered outside the inn. Many in the group had bows and other makeshift weapons in hand. When Riou and Teresa came into view, they gave a hearty cheer.

"Lady Teresa, please allow us to serve under you!" one of the men shouted.

Teresa looked shocked. "What is the meaning of this?"

A woman walked out of the crowd. Flik recognized her immediately. It was Emilia, the librarian. "I heard that you had decided to work with the New State Army, so I've packed my things and decided to go with you. It seems a lot of other people had similar ideas. The news is spreading very quickly."

Thoughtfully, Teresa said, "I see. Was this a part of your plan too, Lord Riou?"

Riou smiled modestly. "I suspect Shu is thinking ahead for us. Why don't you accept them?"

She looked at the crowd one more time, then announced, "All those who wish to liberate Greenhill and Jowston, come with me and Lord Riou. We are going to Dunan Castle!"

It went much like that throughout the day as they traveled south. As Emilia had intimated, word of Lady Teresa's actions had spread out into the countryside. With each mile that they rode, more and more people swarmed in from the surrounding farms, often in small groups of five or six at a time. They also came to see Riou and, Flik couldn't help blushing, they'd even heard rumors about the "Blue Thunder" who rode at Riou's side. Now if only they could get the nickname right.

Late in the day, the winds shifted out of the south and the weather became hot again. A vast haze settled over the southern horizon. Cresting a hill, Flik managed to catch a glimpse of the Lana River and Two River City. He looked back over his shoulder. He could see the crowds following Teresa, spreading out and along the road, throwing up their own plume of dust.

A disturbance rippled through the rear of Teresa's followers. Flik squinted his eyes, then opened them in alarm. A force of Highland cavalry had caught up with them. He could just begin to make out the screams of panic. He heeled Nightstar back down the hill, riding towards Teresa's position.

Looking at the men wavering around him, he shouted, "Forward, forward, protect your leader! Protect Lady Teresa!"

Men heard him speak and moved with him, his voice lending them courage to make up for their lack of discipline. Flik found Teresa and Riou in the middle of the column, the others with them. The volunteers, unprepared for the sudden attack, were milling around her.

Teresa was pale when Flik rode up. "What should we do? I don't want to be the cause of any more disasters."

Riou looked calmly at her. "Don't worry. You won't be. You have allies who will fight for you." He turned to Flik. "What do you think?"

"There's a hill a little ways back. It'll do for now, but what I really need is to be able to see how large the Highland force is."

"Lady Teresa, please lead your people to the hill and steady them there," Riou ordered. Then he shouted in Luc's direction, "Luc, use your rune to get the dust out of the air. We need to see the enemy!"

Wind gusted at Flik's back, driving past him and parting the cloud of dust like a curtain being drawn back. He could see the enemy, a force of Highland cavalry that numbered more than a hundred, maybe even two hundred. "This is not going to be easy," he said to Riou.

They joined Teresa at the crown of the hill. With her were several hundred men, and some women, who had answered her call. They were armed with a mixture of short bows and homemade spears. Flik tired his best to set the people of Greenhill into something resembling a line, but the confusion caused by the attack made it difficult. The Highlanders were still scattering the rear of the column, running down small groups as they tried to flee.

Aghast, Teresa shouted, "We need to go down there and help them."

Flik shook his head, though he wanted to attack as well. "We can't. We have neither the training nor the weapons to adequately attack the Highland cavalry."

"I'm not going to stand by and watch my people get slaughtered!" Teresa argued.

Both of them turned to Riou to see what he would say, but he was looking back in the direction of Two River City. "I believe we have help on the way."

Checking the road towards the city, Flik saw that Riou was correct. Units of kobolds were streaming out of the city, jogging towards the fighting. The Highland cavalry was also aware of the new arrivals, and broke off the engagement, rapidly falling back to the north.

With the threat receding, Teresa led her men back down the hill. Flik and the others followed. Though the skirmish had not lasted very long, most on the Greenhill side had been untrained townsmen. There were many wounded, judging by what Flik could see and hear.

"Quickly!" Teresa ordered. "We need to gather those that are hurt and get them treated."

"I will see to it," Riou answered. "We have to get everyone moving as soon as possible, before Highland returns with reinforcements." He held up his right hand and a great dome of light spread out over their heads. Once again, Flik could feel the power of the Bright Shield Rune. He also saw the grass alongside the road shrivel and turn brown, life pulled from the land to heal the wounded.

When the dome of light dissipated, Teresa was left staring in wide-eyed shock. "You really do have Genkaku's Rune!"

Riou was busy regarding the withered field. "I do," he answered quietly. Then the crowds were around both of them, joyous people thanking Riou and Teresa for coming down to save them. Riou put on a confident face to receive the thanks. After a moment, so did Teresa, but Flik could tell that neither was entirely comfortable.

The kobolds began to arrive ten minutes later, joining in the celebration. Among the kobolds, one stood out in terms of both size and dignity. Taller than many humans, he was wearing a long green and brown greatcoat, white gloves, and black boots. His head and jaw were long, narrow, and covered with brown fur. At the back of his head, his short ears were upright.

Flik had never seen this kobold before, but knew of him by reputation. He was General Ridley Wizen, leader of the Two River kobolds and commander of all the Two River forces. He was considered a fearsome fighter, fully capable of besting humans in single combat. Only the very slight jowls on his cheeks betrayed the fact that he was getting past his prime in kobold years.

"Greetings, Sir Flik, Lady Teresa, and Lord Riou," he said in a deep voice with a hint of a growl.

"Thank you for your timely rescue," Riou replied.

"Greenhill thanks you too," Teresa added.

"A messenger from Lord Shu suggested that I should be on the lookout for exactly this kind of situation," Ridley answered. "It is my honor to be of service." He gestured back towards the city. "You will find that Lord Shu has also prepared boats to transport you and your people back to Dunan Castle."

With the kobolds escorting them, Teresa and her followers finally made it to Two River City. Evening was well underway by then, so they spent that night camped on the kobold training grounds, generously fed by the kobolds themselves. In the morning, Lord Makai, plenipotentiary of the city, arrived and consulted briefly with Teresa and Riou. When those formalities were finished, they began the process of embarking.

It was only after they were had sailed some distance down the Lana River and Dunan Lake was in sight that Flik finally began to relax. He flopped back first onto the deck and lay there, staring up at the sky. Later, Riou walked over and sat next to him. Flik pulled himself up into a sitting position.

There was an awkward silence, then Riou said, "I wanted to thank you for helping me on this mission."

Flik shrugged. "I told you I'd stand with you until the end of this, and that's what I'll do."

Riou smiled, then laughed. "Yeah, but if you had known you'd have to wear that hideous pink robe, would you have been as eager?"

Laughing, Flik answered, "I don't think I would've believed you. I've never done anything quite so unusual as that." Though dining with Kimberly ranked up there.

Riou suddenly turned serious. "I thought I knew what I was getting into when I said I'd lead, but the more that I see, the less confident I feel."

"What do you mean?" Flik asked warily.

"I've become the bearer of everyone's hopes. They look at me and they see a happy future. I wish I could catch a glimpse of that future too. All I can do is look ahead and prepare for the battles that I see."

Flik closed his eyes, could hear Odessa's voice in those words. He put his hand on Riou's shoulder. "You're not the first to have those concerns. All I can tell you is that you're not alone in this struggle. You have friends and allies to help you with the burden."

Then Nanami and Pilika came over, interrupting the conversation. The others joined the little group, even Luc, though he sat at the edge and didn't say much. Wakaba had questions about Dunan Castle and joining the fight. So did Meg. The discussion became cheerful and turned to reminiscing about how much fun was had in Greenhill. Riou smiled and laughed with the rest of them, and only because of his earlier words could Flik see the mask he was wearing.

Viktor was waiting for them when the galley came up to the docks at Dunan Castle. As Flik stepped onto the wood, Viktor embraced him in a great bear hug.

"You made it back! No permanent scarring, I hope."

Flik shook his head, struggling out of the hold. "Let me go and I'll tell you all about it." He was already mentally editing the story.

Viktor walked over and shook Riou's hand. "Welcome back, great leader. Lord Shu wishes to speak to you in the great hall. Ah, and this must be Lady Teresa. Welcome to Dunan Castle."

"Thank you," Teresa answered in a distracted tone.

Viktor led them back through the corridors of Dunan Castle up to the second floor meeting room. Shu and Apple were waiting for them.

"Congratulations, Lord Riou," Shu said. "You have succeeded under most difficult circumstances." Riou nodded and Shu turned his attention to Teresa. "Welcome to Dunan Castle, Lady Teresa. I would like to discuss how you might best work with the New State Army."

Teresa appeared very wan. "Thank you, but I'd like some time to myself. There are so many things I need to think about, and friends that I must mourn."

Shu clasped his hands behind his back. "I see. Well, before you retire, I want you to speak with at least one other person." He raised his voice. "You may enter now."

Teresa turned towards the entrance, her mouth opening slightly in amazement. Flik was shocked as well, for the two people entering the room were Fitcher and Shin. "Lady Teresa," Shin said.

Teresa looked as though she wanted to hug her bodyguard, but she didn't. "Shin! I thought you were…gone."

"It took some doing, but we were able to escape during the confusion," Fitcher replied. "You just have to know the paths through the woods."

Now Teresa appeared to be on the verge of tears. "I'm glad that you made it."

"I'm impressed," Flik declared. "That's quite the accomplishment, Fitcher."

Fitcher nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "I actually had a little help. In fact, the person who helped me seems to know you very well."

Flik didn't even have any time to begin to register the warning in those words when Nina, still wearing her academy outfit, burst into the room, running directly at him. "Sir Flik, why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell me who you were? Couldn't you trust me?"

Fitcher smiled remorsefully. "I'm sorry, Flik. I didn't realize you hadn't told her your real name."

Fortunately, Nina didn't chose that moment to hug Flik, but contented herself with grabbing his arms. "You were worried about me, right, and you didn't want me to get in trouble if you got caught? That's so romantic!"

Viktor didn't say anything, but his smile and raised eyebrows seemed to say, "So, who's the girl, Flik? You were going to tell me about this, right?"

"I won't be any trouble for you," Nina went on. "But I have to be by your side. Since that day we met, I've known it was destiny that we'd always be together. Oh, and that reminds me, I want to make dinner for you. Hurry, let's go!" She started to drag him from the room.

With a straight face, Shu said, "I believe this meeting is finished. Riou, why don't you take it easy for the rest of the day? We'll have more to discuss in the morning." He looked at Flik, a faint smile on his lips. "That includes you, too, Flik. Do try and get some sleep tonight."

Flik might've responded with some cutting retort, but Nina had pulled him from the room by that time.


	44. Chapter 44 Odessa's Lesson

**Chapter 44 – Odessa's Lesson**

There was happy conversation buzzing at every table of Hai Yo's restaurant except for the one Flik was at. He sat in his chair, staring into a half-finished mug of beer and a bowl of tomato soup.

"What's the matter, Sir Flik?" Nina, to his right, asked. "If you don't eat your soup, it'll go cold."

"Hey, Flik," Viktor, on his left, growled. "Tell the brat to scram. She's killing my buzz."

"Why don't you scram?" Nina retorted. "Can't you see we need some time alone?"

Flik started to massage his forehead with his thumb. "I've known Flik longer than anyone," Viktor argued. "I'm certainly more important to him than some twit who latched on to him a few days ago."

"I'm no twit!" she shouted. "Besides, Sir Flik and I are fated to be together. The Stars of Destiny in the heavens sang out at our meeting."

"I don't care if Hikusaak himself jumped out of the rose bushes to declare you two wed. Just go away, at least until later."

The waitress Min Min suddenly appeared at Flik's back. "Excuse me sir, but if your guests won't stop disturbing the other customers, we're going to have to ask you to leave."

Flik gritted his teeth. "Nina, Viktor and I need to discuss important military matters. You can talk to me some other time, okay?"

Nina frowned, but immediately replaced it with a smile. "Okay, Sir Flik! I'll be waiting for you by your room. See you later!" She got up from her chair and cheerfully bounded away. Flik groaned.

"So…are you actually interested in her?" Viktor asked.

"Of course not!"

Viktor took a swig of his beer. "Then you should tell her that. There's no point in leading her on with half steps."

"I'm not leading her on," Flik answered. "I just don't want to hurt her, that's all."

Smirking, Viktor said, "She's going to keep coming after you until you tell her to stop. Or until she gets what she wants out of you."

"Can we drop the subject, please? I'm not here to talk to you about little girls."

"Right. What do you want to talk about?"

"How are my men?" Flik asked. "I've been out on missions and haven't been able to work with them."

Viktor laughed. "I'm sure they'll be glad to see you. You'll probably go easier on them than Shu. He's had your senior sergeants pulling out their hair trying to get new recruits in shape."

Flik took a sip from his mug. "Any Highland moves?"

"Nope. Everything's quiet. Shu says most of them are still in Muse." Viktor shook his head. "This waiting makes me uneasy. They'll have to come after us sooner or later."

"Hopefully later."

"Could be." Viktor drained the rest of his beer and signaled for another. "Thing is, I want to go out and bonk some heads. That damn strategist's been giving you all the work lately. I'm stuck marching back and forth on dusty roads."

Now it was Flik's turn to smile. "Don't worry, you'll get your chance too."

Later that evening, after several more drinks and a relaxing bath, Flik was making his way back towards his room. He'd been looking forward to sleeping in his own bed for quite some time. Unfortunately, Nina, true to her word, was standing sentinel at the door. At the first glimpse of her, he quickly ducked back into the hallway and flattened himself against the wall.

She appeared not to have noticed him, but continued her vigil by his room. He clenched a fist, telling himself that he was going to march out there and order her to go away. He repeated this in his mind several times, then turned and quickly walked away, leaving his room behind him.

There was only one place to go after that, so he climbed up the stairs of his tower and stood on the landing. Both moons were up and nearly full, though the Blue Moon was waning, while the Scarlet was waxing. The gusting of the south wind had brought up a fine haze that made all but the brightest of stars indistinct. It was uncomfortably warm, even with the sun down.

Flik stretched out on the stone landing and tried to find a comfortable position to sleep in. It wasn't an easy job. He kept tossing and turning on his back, threatening to roll down the stairs. To counteract that, he sat up and leaned back against the wooden roof, but this led to his back becoming sore. Then he went to resting on his stomach. At some point that he didn't remember he fell asleep, and dreamed of events from his past.

In the memory he was running through a thunderstorm, down the slick streets of Gregminster in the middle of the night. He was deathly afraid of losing his way, but also afraid of slowing and getting caught. In his mind, he could hear the beats of the pursuit over the roaring of thousands of drops of rain. Lightning flickered in the sky, enough light to show that he was approaching an alley. Ignoring the stirrings of his rune, he turned and sprinted into the safety.

Back against a wall, chest heaving, Flik waited until he actually heard the patrol stomp past the alley before he moved on. He kept to the shadows, but moved more confidently. The last flash of light had been enough for him to catch his bearings. Still, the streets were not safe for him, especially on this night. Another flash of lightning showed him a single patrolman ahead. Flik waited for the darkness to return, drew his sword, and mercilessly cut the man down from behind. The deed done, he ran on.

His winding course finally brought him to a street full of large mansions, iron wrought fences, and manicured lawns. He slowed his steps as he neared one particular mansion. The guards at the gate pointed their spears at him nervously, but recognized him in the next flash of light.

"Commander Flik, what are you doing here?"

"I need to get in!" Flik shouted. "Let me in!" He brandished his sword at them. The blood was slowly running off of it in the rain.

"Let me get Humphrey," one of the guards said uncertainly. He splashed off through the downpour.

"Damn Humphrey! Let me past!"

Flik nervously looked over his shoulder, begrudging every second's delay. To his credit, Humphrey ran up in fewer than five minutes. In his usual unperturbed manner, he asked, "What's up?"

Flik grabbed the bars of the gate and shook them. "Wake Odessa up! We need to go now!"

Gently, Humphrey placed his larger hand on Flik's and pried it off the gate. "Why don't you take a few breaths and calmly tell me what's the matter?"

He swallowed some breaths, but it didn't change his mood. In a slightly less intense tone, Flik stated, "We need to activate the contingency plan. The Emperor has decided to move openly against us."

One of the guards dropped his spear in shock. A rolling of thunder overwhelmed the noise. "You sure?" Humphrey asked.

With a tight jaw, Flik answered, "Of course I'm sure. The information comes from Viktor. As much as he annoys me, do you think he'd be wrong on that?"

Humphrey shook his head and motioned to the guards to open the gate. "Go and tell Lady Odessa. She'll need to hear it from you. I think you'll find her in her room. But be careful, Flik, her mood has not been good of late." He turned and started giving orders to the guards. "Wake the groomsmen. Tell them to have the horses saddled and ready to go."

Flik darted past them, running down the path that led to the great wooden doors of the Silverberg manor. Not bothering to knock, he shouldered the doors open on his own strength. Inside was a completely different world, one of gold, silk, and perfumed wood. It was dry, and the incessant rain was only a muffled purr on the distant roof.

An elderly but solidly built man rushed over, his face aghast- probably at the puddle forming on the carpeting. He was Horace, Odessa's chief butler. "What has happened?"

"Go. Prepare for your lady's departure," Flik ordered, walking towards the great stairs that climbed to the second level. His blue cape trailed more water onto the floor. At the top of the stairs, he paused to be sure where he wanted to go. When he'd first started in Odessa's service, he'd spent many nights in one of the guestrooms. Recently his duties had pulled him away from this place. It was sadly ironic that even as they'd grown closer together, circumstances conspired to keep them apart.

Now he charged down the hall leading to her sleeping quarters. A maid stood in front of the door at the end of the passage. "My lady has retired for the night," she said, giving Flik a disapproving sniff. "You may leave a message with me-"

With one hand, Flik shoved the maid aside. With the other, he flung open the door. Not hearing the maid's indignant squawk, he rushed into the room. For all the time that they had been together, he had never been in this room. The canopy bed that stood in the middle was at least three times the size of any bed he'd ever seen. As befitted a Silverberg, there were bookcases covering parts of two walls, filled to overflowing with books. He was well aware that she'd probably read most of them and was familiar with all the rest. A wall-length closet extended along the third side of the room.

Odessa was sitting by a dresser with a mirror on top of it, wearing a peach nightgown. Two more maids were helping her comb out her hair for the night. They jumped in front of their lady when Flik looked in her direction. Odessa stood up and motioned them aside, confronting him with a glance that was both annoyed and worried. However, her voice was neutral when she asked, "Why are you here, Flik?"

Flik could barely contain his anxiousness. "Odessa, we must flee at once. Barbarossa has made his move."

The maids frowned at him for not referring to her as "Lady." Odessa smiled; it was an indulgence she was willing to grant to him. "What's happened that's got you so upset?"

"The Emperor's sent men to raid most of our safe-houses in the city. Plus, Viktor's learned that he's ordering an army of ten thousand men through Kwaba. Their orders are to secure Gregminster against 'bandits and other disturbances'."

Odessa's smile quickly became a frown. "The Five Great Generals are permitting such a move?"

"Apparently so."

She crossed her arms on her chest. "Damn. I was hoping that Milich and Sonya would see reason, at least. I wonder, did he use the power of his Rune to force their compliance?"

Flik took a few steps towards her. "Now is not the time to worry about that. We have to leave immediately."

"I afraid I can't permit my lady to escape," a new voice interjected. Flik whirled, his eyes seeing the chief butler standing to the side of the door, pointing a small crossbow in his direction.

"Horace, what is the meaning of this?" Odessa asked.

Flik watched as determination and doubt raged across the butler's face. "I've been given assurances that the Emperor intends no harm for you, my lady. He knows how valuable the Silverberg family is to the stability of the Empire. Everything can be smoothed over if only certain…hotheads are removed from my lady's presence."

Flik's hand tightened on his sword. Horace's steadied over the trigger of the crossbow. "Please put down your weapon," the butler ordered. "We are all well aware of our lady's 'infatuation' with you, so I don't want to have to hurt you."

"Horace, I made my decision to oppose the Emperor a long time ago." Flik could tell by the sound of her voice that Odessa was walking towards him. "None of the people around me have influenced me in that regard."

Horace's finger suddenly wavered, then slipped off the trigger. Flik moved, extending his right hand to launch a bolt of lightning at the butler. The force of the blast tossed the old man hard against the nearest wall, making him drop the bow. Following through, Flik drove the point of his sword into the man's chest, crackling and crunching through his sternum, and pinned him against the wall. Horace coughed up blood onto Flik and then relaxed into death.

Wiping the blood off his cheek, Flik withdrew his sword from the butler and surveyed the room. The two attendants were hugging each other in fear. Odessa had a horrified expression on her face.

"Why did you kill him?" she asked.

"He had a weapon. I couldn't take any chances." Confusion began to well up in him. He'd expected Odessa to be more grateful.

"It was unnecessary. I could've talked him out of it!" Even Flik couldn't mistake the outrage in her tone now.

His confusion was replaced by a blaze of anger. "He was a traitor. He was working with the Emperor. He would've betrayed all of us, even you."

"You didn't have to kill him, damn it!" Odessa shouted at him, on the verge of tears. "I've known Horace all of my life. He was like a father to me, especially when my brother and uncle weren't around. He wasn't a traitor, just a misguided old man!"

"He's the enemy, Odessa," Flik argued back. "This is no time for half-measures. He threatened your freedom. He threatened my life. You know how much I care for you, don't you?" He held the bloody sword that bore her name out in front of him.

"I did not fall in love with a monster," Odessa answered. "Not with a man who kills at the slightest provocation."

He did not fully understand, but he knew her disappointment with him was real, and that cooled his anger. He looked away from her, down at the ground. "I'm sorry."

She walked over in front of him and lifted his chin with her hand until they were looking at each other eye to eye. "You can't undo his death," she said softly. "That's why you should be more careful in your actions. This war will bring so many needless deaths. I didn't want them to begin in my own bedroom." She sighed, then reached forward and touched him on the shoulder. "I accept the apology. Now clean your sword, Flik. I won't allow my name to be associated with unjustified blood."

She moved away, conferring with her maids. Flik stared at his bloody weapon for a moment, then searched for something to wipe it off with. The corner of one of her blankets was handy, so without thinking he cleaned the blade on it. Only afterwards did he realize that he'd now brought that blood directly to her bed. He hoped it wasn't an omen.

The maids had returned with Odessa's new clothes: a gray tunic, white pants, red boots and cape. These were laid out on the bed. Odessa looked at Flik and winked. "As much as I might want to shock the staff -and you- by dressing in front of you, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to wait for me outside my door."

Flik began to blush at her suggestion. "I-yes, I think I'll wait for you." He backed towards the door. As he did so, he paused to drag Horace's corpse out of the room. Waiting in the hall, he studied the dead man, and tried to understand Odessa's lesson.

Forgetting where he was, Flik rolled over to get the sun out of his eyes. He nearly rolled down the stairs. Catching himself at the last moment, he sat up, yawned groggily, and wondered why he was sleeping on the tower. Then he focused on the memory and shivered. He knew that violence was a part of his life now. He hoped that he wasn't being consumed by it.

He jumped up, realizing that he was supposed to be at a meeting this morning. He rubbed a hand across the stubble on his face and looked up at the sun. Flik judged that there was enough time for him to shave before the meeting, if he hurried. Running down the stairs three at a time, he dashed down the halls until he reached his room. Luckily, Nina wasn't waiting at the door, so he walked into the room to prepare to clean up.

This involved leaving his room to fill a shallow metal basin with water from the nearest pump, but once that was done, he returned and sat down in front of his dresser. He casually pulled his bandanna off to get it out of the way and noted that he'd probably need a haircut soon. Grabbing his straight edge, he set to work shaving off the stubble.

In the middle of that process, Nina's voice suddenly said, "This thing reeks." Flik nearly shaved off his nose in surprise. Carefully setting down the blade, he glanced over his shoulder to see Nina sitting on his bed, examining his bandanna with a look of distaste.

"What are you doing in my room?" Flik asked.

Nina pouted. "You never came back last night. I waited and waited and waited and waited for you, but you never came. So then I saw you coming back this morning and let myself in. But enough of that; you really need to wash this. I know! You want me to wash it?" Without waiting for his response, she jumped off of his bed and skipped towards the door.

"No. Wait! Come back here!" She was gone. Flik didn't hesitate. He got up and ran after her. "Give me back my bandanna," he shouted when he caught sight of her.

Nina looked back over her shoulder and smiled saucily. "No way, not until it's clean." She picked up her pace.

The chase was on. He pursued her down the hallways, past Anita, who smirked, past Hilda, who was carrying linens back to her inn, and past a little girl in a pink coat and skirt, who was leading her sheep through the castle. Nina led him to the natural stone balcony near Hai Yo's restaurant. Yoshino, Freed's wife, had set long lines of laundry to dry in this place.

Nina ran over to the wash basin and plunged Flik's bandanna into the soapy water, eliciting a strangled noise from his throat. Yoshino, her long brown hair blowing in the wind, appeared from between two lines to see what the noise was about.

"She's stolen my bandanna," Flik explained.

"I just want to wash it," Nina said. "It stank of dirt and sweat."

Yoshino chuckled behind her hand. "Why don't you let her?" she asked Flik. "It's always nice to have someone looking out for you. I don't think Freed would clean his glasses if I didn't tell him to." Nina began humming happily as she scrubbed the bandanna. "Besides, she seems like a sweet girl," Yoshino added.

"She doesn't need to stick her nose into my business," Flik commented, which made Yoshino giggle again. Flik sighed and sat down on a rock, waiting for the results of the washing.

He tried not to watch Nina as she worked, though she smiled every time he looked in her direction. Odessa had never been that direct with him, certainly not before he'd declared his love to her. She'd also been more mature than Nina, having been engaged and then having to watch as her intended was killed. Besides, he still loved Odessa, still wanted to make himself stronger and better for the sake of their love. No little girl was going to divert him from that.

"Here you go, Sir Flik!" Nina said cheerily. "All nice and clean. Doesn't it smell great?"

Flik started at her appearance before him, then snatched the bandanna out of her hand, tying it around his forehead quickly. It was still damp. Glancing at the sun, he knew he was now very late for the meeting. He stood up and said, "Thanks. I've got to run." That's what he did, sprinting back down the halls towards the meeting room.

He paused outside the room, standing before the Journeyman Crystal, and wondered whether or not he ought to say a quick prayer before Shu or Viktor yelled at him. From inside, he heard Apple ask, "Why don't you set up some chairs for the meetings? It would sure be a lot more comfortable."

"That's just the point," Shu answered. "I don't want people to get comfortable. I want them thinking about new ideas, and speaking them. Besides, even I can't stand sitting around and talking about nothing for too long."

Flik walked into the room, noted Viktor, Teresa, Riou, and Nanami, and waved hello. "Sorry. I had some difficulties this morning."

Viktor smiled broadly. "Difficulties? Nina playing hard to get? All you have to do is pursue her a little more vigorously."

Flik shook his head vehemently. "Don't accuse me of chasing skirt! She's the one who's interested in me and you know it. Besides, she stole my bandana and washed it. I had to follow her around the entire castle just to get it back."

Viktor started laughing loudly. He was probably audible for miles around. "It's like you've got a wife, except she's not spending her nights with you. You've got all the problems and none of the benefits."

Shu cleared his throat loudly, reminding Flik of where they were. Flik looked back at Viktor. "I'll find a way to get back at you for that one," he promised, but his tone was good-natured. "Okay, Shu, you can start the meeting."

"Indeed. Now that everyone is ready, I'll begin. With our recent success in Greenhill and the pending arrival of General Ridley, we will soon have approximately ten thousand men with which to fight the Highland Army. While this is enough for a satisfactory defense of what we hold, it is not sufficient to force the enemy off our land."

"And you've already thought up some brilliant plan that will help us, right?" Viktor added.

"I have," Shu commented. "There are still two City-States within Jowston that are non-aligned in this conflict: Tinto and Matilda. Tinto has closed its borders and is refusing to meet with any of our messengers, but Matilda has recently expressed an interest in talking with us. Specifically, Gorudo wishes to meet Lord Riou personally."

Teresa frowned sourly. "Do you really think Gorudo will work with us? He's more likely to stab us in the back for his own purposes."

"I am aware that Gorudo's primary interest has always been the expansion of his political power," Shu observed. "That's exactly why we have to pursue this option, because his motives and ours are in alignment. Highland now controls all of the States bordering Matilda. Gorudo will not want to be surrounded by the enemy. This also helps us because it will allow us to threaten Highland on a second front, forcing them to split their forces. Do you agree with me, Lord Riou?"

"Why does Gorudo want to speak with me?" Riou asked.

"I believe he wishes to measure your character in person," Shu answered. "Gorudo can be a harsh and exacting judge, but he knows where his interests lie. All you have to do is be yourself, Lord Riou, and I'm sure you will win allies to our side."

Riou nodded, "Okay, let's meet with him."

"I'm coming," Nanami exclaimed. "I want to meet with more of those cool knights."

"Cool?" Riou asked. Flik was wondering the same thing.

"Of course they're cool," Nanami replied. "Just look at their outfits, and their dreamy faces. Are you jealous, Riou? Don't worry, someday you might be as cool as they are."

Flik decided against asking where he ranked. Instead, he took a step forward and said, "I think I'd better go with you, Lord Riou. I'll be able to advise you on the military side of things."

"No way!" Viktor said, raising his voice. "You got to go last time. It's my turn to go with Lord Riou."

"Actually," Shu interrupted, "I'll need both of you here. It's about time we practiced marching the whole army at once, and I want you two to be commanding your own units."

"It's okay," Riou responded. "I think I can handle myself without either of you to help me."

Flik looked at Riou, saw the confidence in the youth's eyes. He nodded, knowing that Riou could do the job. Flik still wanted to go, but he knew how to defer his own desires and follow the orders of his leader. He'd learned that lesson long ago.


	45. Chapter 45 The Festival of Candles

**Chapter 45 – The Festival of Candles**

_In Solis 460, The Sundei, the 21st of Unya:_

_Dear Diary,_

_Now I understand why Shu wanted all of his commanders to be present. The army maneuvers that we had yesterday were very indicative of how much more training we need before the New State Army becomes a real fighting force. I admit, except for the skill of my senior sergeants, I would've been lost out there. I think Shu intends to have us out there nearly every day from now on._

_Riou has been gone for nearly two days. Tai Ho managed to smuggle him and his group directly onto Greenhill territory. If everything goes according to plan, he'll be in Rockaxe by tonight. I don't like Gorudo, not from what I saw at the Hilltop Conference, but we need the knights' help. I hope Riou convinces him to work with us._

Someone pounded on the door to Flik's room, causing him to look up from his journal. He only knew two people who'd interrupt him like that, and the knocking was too heavy for Nina.

The noise continued. "Hey, Flik, you're not going to stay in there all day, are you?" Viktor hollered. Flik closed the book, walked over to the door, and opened it. Viktor stood expectantly in the hall beyond. "Come on, let's go celebrate!"

The halls were already festooned with red and white streamers. Today was the longest day of the year, known as the Sundei, and was nearly universally celebrated by the Festival of Candles. For some, it was also another excuse to get plastered.

"What about our almighty strategist?" Flik asked. "Has Shu given us permission to take the day off?"

Viktor's face suddenly took on a very worried expression. "Wait, you think he'd mess with a holiday? Damn, that'd be just like him."

Flik could feel the frown on his face. "Let's go and ask him. You never know until you try." They trudged through the corridors towards the great hall, where Shu usually held his briefings. Children carrying bundles of candles with red and white stripes ran past them. Flik couldn't help but smile at their enthusiasm. Hanna came after them, holding two large baskets of candles in her hands. She nodded to Viktor and Flik, then continued on after her charges.

The great hall was empty when the two men poked their heads in. It wasn't even decorated for the holiday and had a sad, empty sort of feeling. They didn't linger long in that place. Flik suggested that they should check Shu's room. Viktor groused that they were falling behind on their beer drinking, but followed Flik towards the third floor. This floor was still being repaired, but both Shu and Riou had elected to take rooms there. Of course, on this day, no work was being done. Viktor muttered that the men were probably working on their second hangover of the day by this time.

"Come in," Shu's muffled voice said when Flik politely knocked on the door. Meekly, Viktor and Flik entered the strategist's inner sanctum. It was unexpectedly disorganized. Boxes of books and papers were stacked haphazardly against one of the walls. A potted plant hung from the ceiling a few steps into the room, its leaves dangling down into Flik's face as he walked past. Even the bed was unmade.

Shu was sitting with his back to them, at a tabletop that was propped up by more boxes. He was petting a calico cat, which purred contentedly on his lap. "Good morning, gentlemen. I hope you'll pardon the mess; I haven't really had a chance to unpack." He gestured with one hand towards the boxes.

Shu's relaxed attitude in his room seemed at complete odds with his normal demeanor. Flik asked, "Are you all right?"

The strategist answered with a dismissive wave of his hand and continued speaking on his own topic. "Permit me to hazard a guess as to why you are here. You are concerned about missing out on the festivities because of training, right?" By this point Flik was close enough to see an opened bottle of dark red wine on the table. The bottle was nearly half-empty. On the center of the table stood a red and white candle in a small candleholder.

"You're drunk!" Viktor declared accusingly.

"Not at all," Shu replied. "I've merely reached the stage of self-satisfaction. Sit down and have some, if you like. I'm fortifying myself against Apple's inevitable arrival."

Viktor immediately took Shu up on the offer, plunking himself down in the nearer chair and grabbing the bottle and a pair of extra glasses. Flik took his place with somewhat less alacrity, continuing to study the strategist. "Why are you worried about Apple?" Flik asked. Viktor handed him a glass of the dark wine.

Shu sighed and sipped at his own glass. "Invariably she will have too much to drink, and she'll want to come up here to reminisce about the Master. Then she'll end up crying." He put down the drink and looked in Flik's direction. "It may sound cold, but Master Mathiu is dead. A celebration of life is no time for tears. You should be mindful of that too, Flik."

Flik avoided responding by taking a sip of his wine. He nearly gagged at its strength and dryness, squeezing his eyes shut at the tingling sensation behind his nose. "Good stuff," he heard Viktor say. "Is it Kanakan?"

"Actually, it isn't," Shu answered. "I don't know why people think so highly of southern wines. I find them to be too sweet for my tastes. This is a Chishan wine that I recently discovered. I thought I was going to make a fortune moving them south, but then Riou came along. I guess even I can't predict everything that life brings."

"What about Riou?" Flik asked, blinking the pain out of his eyes. "You think he'll do all right in Rockaxe?"

Shu smiled. "He has no chance of convincing Gorudo to work with us."

A glass shattered on the floor. At first Flik thought it was his own, but that was securely on the table. He glanced over at Viktor and saw his dumbfounded expression. A pool of wine was spreading around his boots. "Why not?" Viktor asked.

"Gorudo's got a non-aggression pact with Highland. There's nothing official on that, but my trading sources have been hinting at that since last winter. Highland's swapped some border towns for Gorudo's guarantee that he'll stay out of the conflict."

"That's insane!" Flik shouted, wincing at his own voice.

Shu calmly took another sip of his wine. "Is it? If I were in his position, I would probably do the same thing."

"But that's wrong," Flik retorted, standing up and looming over the strategist. He was burning on the inside, though from anger or liquor he couldn't tell. "He's abandoning his allies."

"Sit down, Flik," Shu commanded, unruffled by the intimidation. When Flik obeyed, Shu continued to speak. "During a conflict, one must make decisions with a clear head, based on a careful reading of facts. Impulsive actions derived from hot emotions will only lead to disaster. By sitting out this war, Gorudo believes he will be in a better position to dictate the peace once we and Highland have exhausted each other. Moreover, he gains land and spares his people all at once. If he can pull that off, it will be an admirable diplomatic move."

"I don't think so," Flik argued. "What's the worth of a peace gained by sacrificing allies?"

After another sip, Shu steepled his hands and said, "Tell that to the people who don't have to fight."

While Flik and Shu were debating, Viktor had grabbed the bottle and chugged the remainder of the wine. He set it down and fixed a penetrating stare on Shu. "If you know Gorudo's not going to work with us, why'd you send Riou at all? I think you've got some sort of sneaky plan."

"Why, I do," Shu said modestly. "As I stated before, if I were the leader of the Matilda Knights, I wouldn't get involved in the war. However, I'd also keep Riou as far away from my knights as possible. Do you think all of Gorudo's men share their leader's feelings? I'd say a lot of them are upset with his policy." Shu paused and finished off his glass with a flourish. "Gorudo has seriously underestimated Riou's abilities. I expect a significant portion of his knights will soon be joining us in our fight against Highland."

Viktor smiled happily. "That's great! I bet you've got this whole war figured out, right down to the last move."

"I probably do," Shu answered.

Flik looked at the two of them, wondering at their confidence. Maybe it was because he hadn't had so much to drink, but he didn't feel as optimistic. Maybe he was just a sad drunk.

The two of them excused themselves shortly thereafter. Viktor was in high spirits and wanted to proceed as quickly as possible to Leona's and drink some more. Flik's mood was also better now that he wasn't arguing with Shu, but his stomach growled for food. They walked down two levels of stairs, out into the large foyer on the ground floor.

This area too was covered in red and white. Workers from Hai Yo's restaurant were setting up several tables, and a banner overhead promised a "Cook-off Extravaganza." At the Tablet of Stars, someone had pressed a red and white candle on Luc. He regarded this symbol of the celebration with a slight frown.

"Lighten up!" Viktor shouted to the mage. "You're supposed to be having a good time."

Luc shook his head. "I don't understand. Why do you celebrate the fact that your lives are so short?"

Laughing, Viktor answered, "We party because we are alive. That's certainly preferable to not living at all."

"Spoke the man who is dying before my eyes," Luc retorted.

Viktor glowered at him. "You know what, I'll probably outlive you. At least I'm happy to be alive. You'll probably go and do some damn stupid thing to get yourself killed."

Flik began to walk towards the bar. "Let him be. He's just in one of his moods."

"I don't like to see anyone being morose, especially not during a celebration." Viktor shrugged. "Oh well, let's get those beers. Talking to him is making me sober."

They started to walk away when Luc suddenly exclaimed, "What the hell?" Flik turned in time to see the wind mage disappear in a flash of light.

"You don't think I upset him?" Viktor asked.

"Who knows why Luc does anything." Flik turned and headed back towards the bar. "Come on, let's go before all the good beer is gone."

He'd taken two steps when another flash of light sent his shadow racing down the hall in front of him. Then something large crashed into his back, knocking him face first into the ground. Through the momentary darkness and pain, Flik distinctly heard a girl's voice say, "Oh, it's Viktor! We missed you at the feast. Why weren't you there?"

Viktor's reply was somewhat hesitant. "Um…I've been here for a while. I mean, the army's here." He paused momentarily, trying to get his bearings. "So…what brings you here, Viki?"

The girl started babbling excitedly. "Well, there I was at the victory celebration and I was about to take a drink, but some of the bubbles got up my nose and I sneezed. Next thing you know, I'm standing in the middle of some forest and a bunch of people walked up to me. Their leader invited me to a place called Dunan Castle. Viktor, is this Dunan Castle? I've been teleporting all over the place trying to find it. This nice lady in her bath yelled that it was to the west."

By this time Flik had recovered his senses enough to shout, "Get off of me!" He tried to rise, but couldn't quite get Viki off his back.

She squeaked in surprise. "The floor is talking to me! Now it's moving. This is the most amazing castle. Oh, it isn't the floor, it's just somebody on the floor." To Flik's great relief, Viki got up from his back. "Hello, person on the floor, why are you on the floor anyway? Do you like it down there? Is it comfy?"

Groaning, Flik got up. A girl in a long white dress with blue edging stood next to Viktor. Her dark brown hair hung all the way down past her waist. She was holding a knife and fork in her right hand. Cold gravy covered the blade of the knife. Flik recognized her immediately. Despite her apparent youth and scatterbrained personality, she was a powerful magess who could teleport people over great distances if her spells worked correctly. Two years ago, she'd joined Tir McDohl's forces completely by accident, but she'd been a useful, though unpredictable, ally for the duration of the war.

"Flik, you're here too?" she asked. "But Tir said that you'd taken an arrow in the leg." She bent down to examine the limb in question. "I don't see any arrow."

Flik backed away. "That was a long time ago, Viki. Are you planning on staying here for a while?"

Ignoring him, she sniffed the air. She turned around and gazed at the preparations for the cook-off. "I smell food! Is there going to be a party? Oh, I hope I don't get any bubbles up my nose."

Flik motioned to Viktor, pointing towards the door to the tavern. With Viki preoccupied by the celebration, they sprinted away from her, nearly pulling the door to the bar off its hinges in their haste to escape. As expected, Leona's bar was packed, filled with more than a hundred people. The two men fought their way to the counter.

Leona shooed away an assistant and served them personally. "I expected you two earlier," she said tersely, handing them two mugs of beer. "Don't tell me you've found some other bar to get drunk at."

"It's not like that," Viktor pleaded. "We had to talk to Shu about things, that's all." Leona's eyes fixed on Flik, who swallowed and nodded. This seemed to satisfy Leona. Viktor and Flik then tried to find a place to sit. Luckily, many of the patrons in bar were from Viktor's mercenaries, and they quickly cleared two chairs for the commanders to sit at.

Flik settled into the flow of the celebration, talking and laughing and drinking. People drifted in and out of the bar. Rikimaru, with a huge chunk roast leg in one hand and a mug in the other, sat down with them for a time. Later, several of Gilbert's Zexens showed up and a brawl nearly started. Viktor and Flik had to get up to sort that out, but afterwards returned to the table, speaking amicably with Gilbert. Ace, a young Zexen that Flik vaguely remembered, started up a card game at the next table over, which Viktor took an interest in, though he didn't participate.

Eventually Flik found a compelling reason to get moving again. After going to the bathroom, the two men ambled outside the castle to soak up the atmosphere. The shimmering heat of summer seemed to be amplified by the crowds of people everywhere. There were groups of soldiers taking liberty, kobolds and winghordes from Two Rivers, and many civilians. This surprised Flik, making him wonder how much the town had grown in the space of two months.

Rina, Eilie, and Bolgan had set up their act just outside the castle. Flik watched as Bolgan blew a gout of flame out of his mouth, much to the astonishment of the audience. There was a long line of people waiting for Rina's fortune telling. Flik managed to hear her over the babble of the crowd. "I see you…in Vinay del Zexay…giving tomato seeds to the Flame Champion." Then Eilie, brandishing a pair of knives, looked in his direction and started waving him over. Viktor and Flik, pretending not to notice, turned and quickly jogged through the crowd in the opposite direction.

Gengen and Gabocha sprinted by, waving at the two men as they passed. Down the street, Flik noted that Sid had attracted a curious group of gawkers, many of whom scattered when the winger began to laugh. Further on was a set of competitions, including an archery match and wrestling. The soldiers were more of a presence here, shouting for competitors from their own units and making wagers on each round. Huan and Tuta were there, working on setting the inevitable broken bones. Nearby, Shilo and Tai Ho were earning money at chinchirorin.

There was a sudden pounding noise, distracting Flik. A couple of yards off stood a carnival game, a test of strength. Amada was trying his luck at the moment, holding a large hammer in his hand. The object appeared to be to hit the base hard enough that a metal pin would fly up the slide and ring the bell at the top. Amada had managed about a third of the way up.

The man overseeing the game smiled broadly. "Well, it doesn't look like you've got what it takes, sir. If you want to try again, all you've got to do is put down another ten potch."

Amada shook his head. "You've got this thing rigged. I could hit the bell all the time back in the Island Nations."

"I say, well maybe down there they made things a little easier, but here in Jowston we have real men." The proprietor, a rather dumpy man himself, puffed out his chest. Then he saw Viktor and Flik. "You there, yes you, why don't you show him what a real man can do? Just ten potch a try."

Viktor clapped his hands. "Why not? Looks easy enough." He handed over ten potch and grabbed the hammer. Setting his feet, he hefted the hammer up over his head and slammed it down onto the base. The pin slid to the midpoint, hovered by a crudely drawn picture of a rabbit with an axe, and then dropped back to the bottom.

"Come on, sir, you can do better than that," the proprietor encouraged. "All you've got to do is pay ten potch to try again."

Viktor frowned, but paid up. The pin got no higher on this second try. Or the third. Or the fourth. Or the twenty-fourth. After that failure, he hurled the hammer to the ground so hard that it bounced. "Enough!" he shouted. "This game is rigged. I want my potch back."

A crowd had gathered around them to see what all the commotion was about. The proprietor smiled jovially. "Now, now, sir, you can't go making false accusations. Simply because no one has proven strong enough doesn't mean the game is rigged. Now, if you're through, is there anyone strong enough to take my test of strength?"

Viktor looked as though he was going to advance on the pudgy man, but a female voice drew everyone's attention. "I'll try." Oulan walked out of the crowd, her size and figure commanding all of the male eyes present.

The proprietor hastily wiped the drool off his face and said, "For you, dear, only five potch are needed." Oulan smiled as she paid the man and accepted the hammer, but Flik thought he saw a glitter of fire in her eyes. She took one look at the contraption and casually swung the hammer onto the base. The pin flew up the slide and rang the bell.

The proprietor gaped. "Th-that's not…it's not…possible!"

Oulan shrugged. "No problem at all. Anybody else want a go?" She offered the hammer to Flik.

All Flik could say in response was, "No thanks. I'm good."

Afternoon gave way to evening, and the sun trailed off towards the west. There were all kinds of people selling food, and Flik partook of several varieties of ham, beef, lamb, fish, and venison. He even managed to eat some vegetables, to soothe his conscience. In various places, musicians began to play, each group vying with the next until none of them could be heard distinctly. Not that it mattered, for the celebrants were willing enough -or drunk enough- to dance to anything.

An alarmingly large and exuberant group of young ladies -and some that were not so young- were waiting to dance with Flik. He found himself being pulled back into the dances by a different face each time the music started again. First Millie and then Meg danced with him. Both girls were enthusiastic, if not particularly good partners. Rina danced with him next, keeping herself tight against him and smiling at his discomfort. Nina found him after that and probably would've occupied him the whole night, except that Leona and Barbara wished to dance with him. These two also danced with Viktor.

Later, a small, very old lady in a rose dress and hat danced with him. In the middle of their dance, she remarked that he should try to loosen up a little, or he'd never land a wife. Anita was next, and Flik had to shuffle his feet to keep them from being impaled by her heels. Then there was a pause, as poles bearing red and white ribbons were set up. The married and intended couples were invited forward to dance and wind the ribbons around the poles. Nina came forward and tried to pull him out among the couples, but here Flik refused, taking a seat by Viktor and watching the action.

Freed and Yoshino were in this dance, as were Alex and Hilda. To Flik's surprise, Rossgard was also out there, dancing alongside a woman with long black hair and a dark red dress.

Flik leaned over to Viktor and quietly asked, "Who's my senior sergeant dancing with?"

"You don't know?" Viktor's laughter was embarrassingly loud, at least for Flik. "You remember that he helped some kids find their mother? Well, that's the mother. Her name's Ellani, I think."

Flik raised his eyebrows. "Is this serious?"

Tarrance, another of Flik's senior sergeants, leaned over to join the conversation. "I'd say so. They're out dancing around the sunpoles."

Shrugging his shoulders, Viktor added, "There's a lot of that going around. The war's shattered many people's lives, so it's only natural that they'd seek stability as quickly as possible."

"But who'd have guessed that Rossgard would be so quick off the mark?" Tarrance quipped. "Of course, it's probably Ellani who's the driving force. She'll have him married before the year is out, mark my words."

"How are things progressing with that plump little blond you're pursuing?" Viktor asked the senior sergeant. Tarrance started gagging on his beer. Flik's eyes widened some more.

The winding of the ribbons ended as the sun set. By this time, striped candles had been given to everyone in attendance. As the sun's light failed, these were lit, holding the night at bay. The more religious-minded among the celebrants went off to hold candle vigils at shrines to the True Runes. For those who remained behind, a majority, the dancing became general again.

Flik danced with several more women, before an unexpected new arrival brought all the dancing to a sudden crashing halt. A faint buzzing in his head was only warning he had before Jeane smoothly walked out into the middle of the dancers. If Oulan had earlier drawn all eyes to her, now Jeane's presence seemed to steal reasoning. She smiled and proceeded directly over to Flik. The woman he'd been dancing with made no protest as Jeane took his hands.

"You shouldn't have run from me in Greenhill," she purred. "I'll forgive you, for the price of one dance." Flik's mind was sluggish, and Jeane didn't give him the chance to refuse. She looked over at the musicians and commanded, "Play." They did, working at their music as if their lives depended on it.

The dance that followed went by as a blur in Flik's mind. Jeane's body seemed to glow with its own light, but he also had the distinct impression that her hands were unnaturally cold. Then the song ended, and he was aware of his surroundings. The buzzing in his head ceased and he was able to think clearly.

Jeane had a thoughtful expression on her face. "Shall we dance another round? This time I might even let you lead."

Once again, Flik beat a hasty retreat. Jeane laughed and turned to receive the attention of a growing crowd of men. Viktor walked up beside Flik. "You didn't mention her when you were telling me about Greenhill."

Flik had to swallow a couple of times before speaking. "It kind of slipped my mind."

"Slipped your mind?" Viktor asked incredulously. "Are you sure you weren't trying to hide her from me?"

"What are you talking about?"

But Viktor was staring at Jeane. "Damn. Now I regret not talking to her more during the last war. Excuse me, Flik, but I've got a crowd to clear if I'm going to get my dance with her." He strode purposefully forward.

Flik shook his head, clearing out cobwebs. The music had started again, and Jeane was dancing with another lucky man, or unlucky, depending on the viewpoint. Flik went back to the table, picked up his candle, and quietly made his exit. He strolled back towards the castle. The streets were somewhat more subdued than earlier. There were individuals seeking the best parties, couples looking for seclusion, and even a few unlucky soldiers stuck with patrol duty.

Back in the castle, there was a crowd of drunken men outside the doors of Leona's bar, and singing from within. Flik walked on. In the next room, a few tired workers were cleaning up from the cook-off, and the Tablet of Stars stood without its guardian. Yawning, Flik shuffled up the stairs. As tired as he was, he didn't want to return to his room yet. Inevitably, his feet guided him up to the top of his favorite tower.

On the landing, he leaned back against the roof and closed his eyes. The night was clear and very warm. He could hear the crashing surf intermingled with the sounds of revelry below. Ignoring the soreness in his legs, he began to relax and drift off.

"There you are, Flik," a girl's voice declared. "I knew if I waited long enough, you'd come up here." His eyes popped open, focusing on the speaker.


	46. Chapter 46 Provocation

**Chapter 46 – Provocation**

The speaker was Tengaar, who was frowning and holding a long cloth bundle in her hands. "Have you been enjoying yourself?" she asked sarcastically. "Out having a good time? Hix and I had hoped you'd join us for The Watch."

Flik couldn't help but let a groan escape his lips. Warrior's Village was one of the few places that didn't celebrate the summer solstice with The Festival of Candles. Instead, they held The Watch, a full twenty-four hour period of meditations in full battle array. The purpose was to reflect on the warrior's dedication to the Way and his willingness to perfect his craft. Since his departure from Warrior's Village, Flik had only performed those meditations intermittently.

He mentally kicked himself for forgetting about Tengaar and Hix's presence at Dunan Castle. "Look, Tengaar, I'm sorry-"

"Is that all you have to say?" Tengaar interrupted. "You spent all day getting drunk and ignoring your duties and that's all you have to say? You've set a very poor example for Hix." She glared at him.

Flik had to fumble through both lethargy and indignation to get his answer out. "It was never my intention to serve as a role model for him."

"Oh, that's good," Tengaar retorted. "Maybe I can use you as an example of what not to do. I can show him how you've wasted your life. That should be enough to get him motivated."

"I have not wasted my life!" Flik shouted. He stopped and shook his head, trying to get a handle on his anger. He continued in strained tone, "You have no right to judge me. I'm an adult; I make my own choices."

"You're no adult, not without having completed your Manhood Journey." Tengaar smirked, adjusting the bundle in her hands. "All you are is a twenty-seven year old child who's running from his responsibilities because he doesn't like them."

"I am not running from my responsibilities. I use my blade to help people, to defend them."

"You use that blade because it gives you satisfaction," Tengaar countered. "You enjoy fighting for its own sake. Even the most common thug could say the same, and that is why you are not a true warrior."

Flik's head was starting to hurt. He did not want to continue this conversation, knowing that it would likely degenerate into a shouting match. He turned away from Tengaar and said, "Go away. I don't want any more lectures from you."

"Don't you turn your back on me," Tengaar demanded, outraged. "A child of Warrior's Village never turns his back on a woman until she has dismissed him, or have you forgotten your manners?"

Flik started massaging his forehead with one hand. "Unless you have preempted the elders by marrying Hix, you are also still a child, Tengaar," he muttered. He faced her again, glaring at her. "Now, since I am the oldest…person here, I'm ordering you to leave."

Tengaar shook her head. "No. Not until I prove to you how far you've strayed." She pulled the cloth off of what she was carrying, a short sword that reflected the moonlight on its blade. "Come on, Flik, show me you remember the Way." She lunged towards him, blade forward.

Disbelieving what his eyes were telling him, Flik almost opened his mouth to protest. Then his warrior's mind interceded, moving muscles that felt sluggish and sore, due to the effects of the festivities. There was no time to draw his blade; he parried Tengaar's first slice by snapping the sheath off his belt and blocking her sword with that.

She hopped away, making a stab for his stomach, which Flik swept aside with the sheath. Heart hammering away in his chest, he finally drew his sword, discarding the scabbard so that it rattled down the stairs. Was Tengaar seriously trying to hurt him? Her weapon looked like it could, if it struck. He tried to speak some calming words to her.

Tengaar didn't let him, rushing back to the attack. The sheer ferocity of it drove Flik back, for a moment threatened to overwhelm him. Still, for all the strength behind Tengaar's strikes, she had no training with the sword, and her slashes were wild. Wrapped in his battle calm, Flik parried each one. Using his greater weight, he locked his sword against hers and pushed her back across the landing, towards the far edge.

Tengaar gave ground, sidestepped, and hopped up on the sloping roof of the tower. Flik blocked a stab at his head and quickly joined her, refusing to allow her the advantageous position. He was less sure of his footing now that he was on the wooden shingles of the roof, but he pressed the attack. Slowly, they fought their way up the slope, Tengaar falling back and trying to remain higher than him. Flik, by a series of feints, backed her up to the widow's walk at the very top of the roof.

The walk was a narrow one, no more than a yard in width and without railings. Flik felt the wind rip at him, threatening to drag him back by his cape. Aware of the danger of his surroundings, he yelled to Tengaar, "Enough! This is pointless."

"Conceding already?" Tengaar taunted. "What's the matter, can't keep going when things get too tough?" She swung her sword in a wide slice, which Flik met. The two blades clanged together roughly.

With their blades locked once more, Flik pressed his size advantage, shoving Tengaar back along the walk, towards the edge. Here he hesitated. His battle instincts were whispering a dozen ways to finish her and be done with the fight, but all of them involved her death. Whatever her purpose was in driving him this far, he wasn't about to kill her.

Tengaar exploited his moment of hesitation to free her sword from his, backing all the way to the edge of the walk. Refusing to yield, she swung at him once more. Breaking form, Flik met her attack with a powerful two-handed swing of his own. A jolt raced up his arms when their blades clashed, then his follow-through lifted her sword out of her hands, sending it sailing off into the blackness.

Any celebrations over his victory would have to wait, because the force of his counterattack had also unbalanced Tengaar, and she teetered backwards on the edge. Dropping his own sword, Flik lunged and grabbed one of her hands with his, pulling her back from the fall. Determination sparkled in Tengaar's eyes, and Flik felt a slight pinprick on his neck. He looked to see that she'd drawn one of her daggers, the point of which rested against his skin.

"I win," she announced. She withdrew her blade, leaving Flik with only a stinging sensation where the point had been. He rubbed the spot, while Tengaar casually walked down the roof. Flik followed more carefully, making sure to retrieve his sword in the process.

Only once he had his weapon securely in hand did he turn to face Tengaar, who was standing over by the stairs. "What were you thinking, doing that?" Flik shouted. "Did you want one of us to get hurt?" All the anger that he'd controlled during the fight started to boil within him.

She looked at him sidelong, her demeanor entirely changed, and answered softly, "Flik, please come home. Haven't you been away long enough?"

The switch in tone surprised him, stilling his anger completely. He tried to sort out his thoughts on the matter. "It's not really my choice. I don't think the elders will accept my return."

"Why don't you ask them? Why don't you try?"

"I don't like the policies that they adopted. I think they were wrong and still are wrong, and I don't think my coming back will change their minds."

Frowning, Tengaar replied, "You think staying away will solve anything?"

Flik didn't like where this conversation was going. Even through the afterglow of adrenaline, he could tell he was being backed into a corner. "I don't want to fight them, Tengaar. It's easier on everybody if I stay away."

"That's what makes you pathetic," Tengaar stated. "You'll fight any opponent placed in front of you, except the one that counts. That was my point tonight. It doesn't matter what excuse you use to soothe your conscience, the fact remains that you're nothing more than a mindless killing machine."

Flik was stunned by the force of her words. He couldn't even open his mouth to respond, not that Tengaar let him. "You are a coward, Flik. A coward who can point out a problem, but can't muster the strength to fight it. That's why your heart is so restless. So, you can keep running and you can keep fighting, if that's what you want. You can keep fighting for the rest of your life, but you'll never find true peace unless you confront the thing that upset you in the first place."

That rebuke stoked Flik's anger again, and he spoke without thinking. "You know nothing about why I left, and I won't let you bully me into meekly going back. Save that for Hix. It seems to work better on him anyway."

Now Tengaar turned her back on him. "Don't think you're the only one who doesn't like the elders, but at least I will do something about it. Keep fighting your meaningless battles, Flik, and see who remembers you when you're dead." Then she walked down the stairs, ending the argument.

Flik sagged back against the roof, deflated by her last remark. To one raised in Warrior's Village, remembrance was an important issue. It was their belief, and his as well, that a person's standing in the afterlife was determined by the devotion paid to him. Thus, storytelling was something of a sacred art in the Warrior's Village. It was why any person of the village would ramble on for hours about the great heroes of the past.

It was why he clung so desperately to his memories of Odessa and refused to allow anyone to take her place. He did not want to lose her in the afterlife due to his own negligence. However, in all that longing, he'd given little thought to the state of his afterlife. He wondered if he could find Viktor and talk to him about it, but decided against that. He didn't think Viktor would tolerate that sort of discussion on this night.

Shuffling his feet wearily, Flik made his way down the stairs, stooped and gathered up the sheath to his sword. He continued down, staggering through dark hallways until he reached his room. Thankfully, no one was waiting for him by the door, so he pulled it open and dragged himself in.

He pawed awkwardly at the dark in his room, until by feeling he managed to find the table in the middle of the room. There were three gifts placed there. Gift giving was another tradition of the Festival of Candles, but the gifts were always anonymous. Despite this, Flik usually knew who was giving him presents. By touch, he determined that one object was a new shield and that the another was a bottle of liquid. These he understood. The third present felt like a long string of beads, possibly a necklace. Who would give him that?

He pried the bottle open and started drinking. It was a thick, sweet alcohol. A warning voice whispered in his head that he ought to hold back, but Flik shoved it aside, continuing to drink. He drank until the liquid started to dribble out of the corners of his mouth and down his cheeks and chin. He drank until his fingers were numb, and he could no longer feel the bottle, much less the chair he was sitting on.

He drank until the empty bottle slipped out of his grasp, rolled down his chest, and clunked on the unseen floor. Dumbly, Flik attempted to get out of the chair, reeling and embracing the darkness as if it had physical form. It was the floor that met him, and he thought that it was strange he should be on the ground when he had just stood up. Then he decided the floor was as good a place to seek solace as any. He closed his eyes, searching for his path to Odessa.

There were no dreams, not that Flik remembered, just a splitting headache that greeted him when he opened his eyes. Midmorning light streamed through the window, causing his eyes to water. For a moment, he had no idea where he was. He was lying on his bed, tucked under the blankets. That was odd, for he was sure he'd passed out on the floor.

Flik tried to sit up and was rewarded by a vision of the room lurching and swaying and the headache redoubling in intensity. He collapsed back onto his pillow, gathering strength for another try. When everything had returned to normal, he attempted to ease himself into a sitting position by slowly backing himself against the headboard until he was upright. The dizziness and nausea returned, but he managed to tolerate it this time.

Next, Flik swung his legs over the edge of the bed and let them rest on the floor. He waited several more minutes before making the attempt to stand up. He couldn't make it upright, but swayed in place, bent double, and then staggered forward to the table and sat down in the same chair he'd been in last night.

His hand brushed against a paper left on the table. It was a message of some sort, and Flik squinted to try and read it. It was from Viktor, who could be alarmingly literate when he wanted to.

_Yo, Flik,_

_What the hell were you trying to do to yourself last night? Damn, it was a good thing I found you before someone like Nina did. It's been a long time since you got yourself that drunk. Listen, stay in bed for a while. Don't even think about trying to train with your men; I'll take care of that. I'll come around later to check on you._

_P.S. – Don't even think about getting out of bed. In fact, if you're reading this, get back in bed. If I find you outside, I'll haul you back myself._

Flik would've chuckled, but he was still too woozy to do so. Pride welled up within him, and he stood up, prepared to show Viktor, or anyone, that he was ready to face the world. After his legs wobbled, he decided that a short rest might be in order. He stumbled back over to his bed and fell into it.

He rested fitfully. At various times Flik could hear the sound of practice going on, and each time he wanted to rise and join them. Yet his body wasn't quite ready to obey his mind's commands. His stomach was unsettled, making him not want to eat anything.

Late in the afternoon, Viktor showed up, knocked once on the door, and invited himself in. He was bearing a bowl of chicken noodle soup, which he handed over to Flik with the command, "Eat up. It's from Leona."

While Flik ate, Viktor chatted about the news of the day. Ridley and the kobolds from Two River City had finally arrived, boosting the New State Army's strength. There was still no word on the movements of the Highland Army. Flik, feeling his hunger, savored the soup.

However, once Flik was finished, Viktor's demeanor became serious. "So, you going to explain why I found you half-dead last night, or am I going to have to guess? Not that it would take much guessing, I think. There's only one reason you'd try to drink yourself into the ground."

"Yeah," Flik commented.

Viktor frowned. "Going to tell me about it?" He sat down in the chair by the table, clearly willing to wait Flik out.

Flik's pride tried to assert itself, but he ignored it and talked to his friend. He described the verbal confrontation with Tengaar, though he brushed aside the fight. Then he voiced his fear.

"Suppose I never get to her, Viktor. Suppose that I die and she's not there. Or I'm not there."

"I don't know much about the afterlife," Viktor answered, shrugging his shoulders. "Of course, I've never been there, so how could I?" He chuckled to himself, but quickly dropped the levity. "Listen, Flik, I do know one thing. You really will lose her if you give up hope. I mean, you believe that good exists, right?" When Flik nodded, Viktor continued. "What you've got to do is keep living with that hope, hold on to it, and never let it go."

Flik put the bowl on the floor and flopped back onto his pillow. "Maybe. It's hard not to speculate and worry."

"You can't spend all your time worrying," Viktor answered. He was quiet for a moment, then asked, "What's this?"

Flik propped himself back up. Viktor was twirling the bead necklace around one finger. "A gift," Flik responded. "I have no idea who gave it to me."

"A secret admirer? Maybe of the schoolgirl variety?"

Flik gagged. "Throw it out. I don't want it."

"Nah, that'd be too easy. I'll just leave it here. If you want to get rid of it, you'll have to do the deed yourself." Viktor plunked the adornment back on the table, stood up, and grabbed the bowl. "Keep resting. Tomorrow you'll be back to normal, or close enough. See you later." He ducked out the door.

Having eaten, Flik was felling better, well enough that he even managed to read for a while. After that, he tried to sleep again. His sleep was only sporadic, due to the fact that he'd rested all day. By the time the first hints of dawn were visible through the window in his room, he was ready to get going. He shaved and dressed himself, pausing a moment to consider the necklace. Instead of throwing it out, he put it in his pocket, which he felt was a reasonable compromise.

His next task was to find food. He wandered over to Hai Yo's restaurant and pestered the cook into re-heating the remains of last night's dinner, split-pea soup. Flik gobbled the first helping, which only served to wake his appetite. He held off after the third bowl, since he didn't want to upset his stomach again.

Now fortified, he grabbed the new shield, which had a spike on the face, and went down to one of the practice fields. The morning was mild, with a hint of mist off the lake, and a slight breeze out of the northwest. There were only a few other training fanatics out there, so Flik took a spot in front of one of the dummies and proceeded to beat the stuffing out of it. Wakaba, who'd been training, stopped to watch him, clapping when a particularly powerful strike splintered the wooden arm of the target.

Someone else was walking out onto the practice field as Flik wrenched his sword free from the wood. It was Hix, who was looking in his direction. Still feeling slightly ashamed about the confrontation with Tengaar, Flik tried to ignore the youth and went back to hacking at the dummy. He could feel Hix watching him.

Flik sent a crushing blow into the head of the dummy. Then he turned and addressed Hix uneasily, "Can I help you with something?" It wasn't that he disliked Hix, but Flik didn't want any more reminders of Warrior's Village at the moment.

Hix shifted nervously. "I was hoping you'd let me join your unit again, just like during the last war. Actually, Tengaar said I should ask you. She said that observing you would be good for me."

_She said that?_ Flik shook his head, clearing his thoughts, and noticed that Hix had taken that for a negative reaction. Quickly he covered his mistake. "There's no problem, Hix. You're more than welcome with us. How…uh, is Tengaar doing, by the way?"

"She was upset that you didn't join us for The Watch, but I said that you probably had made your own arrangements."

It was very hard for Flik to meet Hix's eager, innocent eyes. "Yeah, I had other arrangements. Never mind, let's round the men up and get the morning drills underway."

These drills were mock combats on horseback, squad against squad. Flik, Hix, and the senior sergeants watched the bouts. The four officers were very competitive when it came to having the best trained men. Flik also noted Tengaar hanging around, attempting to look inconspicuous as she observed Hix observing him. Undoubtedly, she'd attempt to ride with Hix when Flik went out to battle.

Flik was about to call for a break when an alarm bell began to ring. The signal was quickly picked up by every bell in the city. The men stopped practicing and began to mill about. Flik shook his head, shouting to make himself heard. "Fall into companies! Now!" The senior sergeants heard him and repeated the order. Soon the soldiers were in formation.

Meanwhile, Flik glanced at the keep of the castle, as if that might give him some clue to what the alarm was about. He motioned Rossgard towards him. "I'm going to see what's happening. Have the men stand in place until I get back." Then he heeled Nightstar towards the keep, Hix and Tengaar following uninvited in his wake.

The castle was in an uproar, with soldiers and civilians shouting at the top of their lungs. However, it was the sailors who were moving with the most purpose. Groups of them were sprinting towards the stairs that led to the docks. Out of the hubbub Flik managed to hear that Highland was making some sort of move with ships from Coronet.

The great hall on the second floor was more crowded than Flik had ever seen it. Viktor and Gilbert jostled with Tai Ho, Yam Koo, Tsai, Shin, and Amada, while Freed stood behind all of them and tried to get a good view of the dais. Luc was also there, sulking in one of the back corners. Chaco appeared to have been invited to represent the Winghorde. On the dais, Apple paced nervously back and forth, while Ridley frowned, and Teresa rubbed her hands anxiously. The mood was sour, and Flik distinctly heard someone mutter, "It's a shame that Highland should attack while Lord Riou is away."

Shu suddenly appeared, the last person to enter the great hall. Conversation ceased as everyone watched the strategist ascend the dais. He cleared his throat and spoke to them calmly. "First and foremost, I can assure you that this is not the opening move of a Highland campaign against us." The room relaxed visibly at this statement. "Our scouts have told us that the Highlanders appear to be in pursuit of some refugees who are trying to cross the lake. Now that you know this much, most of you are superfluous to this conversation. Get out, if you would. However, Tai Ho, Amada…, and Flik, please stay behind."

Flik felt a strange prickly sensation on his skin at the mention of his name. He saw Viktor give him a questioning look as he left the room. After the great hall had cleared a little, Shu continued the briefing. "I am not certain why Highland persists in chasing the refugees this close to Dunan Castle, but I do not intend to let this provocation go unanswered. Moreover, it will be an excellent chance for the fleet to get some combat practice against a weaker enemy. We will deploy the fleet at once. Tai Ho, you will command the left wing, and Amada will command the right. I suggest you maintain a crescent formation until the battle dictates otherwise. Your main priority is to put the enemy to rout, but you should also pick up the refugees as soon as you are able. They may have some useful information."

Tai Ho smiled. "I've been looking forward to a good fight. It's time to show those Highlanders who's boss."

Amada's grin was wider. "There's nobody who can beat an Island Nations man in a naval battle, and now I'll prove it."

Shu nodded. "Good. Take that enthusiasm and do battle."

Tai Ho and Amada sprinted from the room, eager to begin the fight. Shu turned to face Flik. "I will need your men ready to move as well."

"Where? And when?" Flik asked.

"The where is easy. We will be going into Greenhill province to help Lord Riou. When is more difficult. In a couple of days, I think. There is one more piece that needs to fall into place. When it does, we will need to move quickly. That is all."

Once out of the great hall, Flik located Hix and sent the youth back to his men with the message to stand down. Flik, on the other hand, went up to his tower to view the progress of the battle. Once up there, he could see that he wasn't the only person who wanted to view the show. People lined the cliff faces, avidly watching the scene on the lake.

The galleys of Tai Ho and Amada were under oars, moving steadily towards the north. In the distance, Flik could see similarly shaped Highland ships, though there were not as many as the New State Army's fleet. The Highlanders were moving south, overtaking a group of smaller craft, which ranged from fishing boats to little more than dugout canoes. For a few minutes, all three groups maintained their headings. Then the Highlanders abruptly swung around to the north, ending their pursuit. The crowd along the cliffs erupted with a hearty cheer when they saw the enemy begin to retreat.

In the end, there was no battle at all. The Highlanders were too far away to be overtaken, so Tai Ho and Amada worked at shepherding the refugees to the safety of Dunan Castle. Flik went down from his perch and gathered his senior sergeants, telling them about Shu's orders. Later in the afternoon he went to see if Templeton had some maps of the Greenhill region.

That night, Flik couldn't sleep. It had nothing to do with having a hangover. It was simply too hot to rest comfortably. Searching for a cool breeze, he made his way back up the tower. Here he was rewarded; the wind off Lake Dunan was refreshing. Both moons were up. The Blue Moon was half full and in the west, the Scarlet Moon was nearing full and in the east.

Flik sighed contentedly and stretched out on the landing, determined to sleep here. He was just about to close his eyes when something caught his attention; the stars were disappearing. Startled, he sat up and tried to make sense of what he was seeing. The sky to the north and east was brightening rapidly, filling with an unnatural silver light that caused the stars to fade.

The light spread, and the night's darkness gave way before it, retreating to the south, over Flik's head, until it was simply a little band of darkness on the distant horizon. The night insects fell silent and even the waves on the lake seemed to still. Flik did not dare to take a breath, lest he break the pregnant silence and call some evil down on himself.

Back to the north, the drama continued. A massive, blue wolf's head ascended into the sky. A second head quickly joined it. The mouths on both heads were open in a soundless howl. As Flik gazed on this, he was convulsed by fear. A primal voice whispered in his mind that what he saw could never be resisted, that he should flee from it now if he wished to live. He tried to resist, but found that he was shrinking away from the light.

Only the fact that the two-headed monstrosity subsided as quickly as it had appeared saved Flik from diving down the stairs to escape it. As he recovered his composure, the silver light rolled back, darkness filling in with each passing moment. Even so, he was aware that songbirds were singing, confused by the brightness.

The two lesser lights of the night managed to reassert their dominance. Seconds later, the whole sky was returned to its natural state. The silver light and two-headed wolf were only memories. Flik unclenched his hands and found that his palms were marked from where his nails had dug in.

There was a footstep on the stairs, and Flik turned in time to see Shu walk out onto the landing. The strategist looked more pale than usual, and he mopped his brow once with a handkerchief before doing anything else. Still, he retained admirable control over his voice when he spoke.

"Ready your men, Flik. That was the sign I was waiting for. The war is coming, and it is time to retrieve Riou."


	47. Chapter 47 What Honor Demands

**Chapter 47 – What Honor Demands**

Before noon of the next day, Flik was once again standing on the piers of the kobold side of Two River, watching as the last of his men disembarked. It did not surprise him that Shu wanted to move quickly on this mission, but it was a surprise that the strategist had decided to come along. Shu was riding a chestnut mare and conferring with Rossgard.

Hix and Tengaar were also with Flik, the latter wearing a pair of tan breeches and dark riding jacket. He'd done little to dissuade her from joining Hix, knowing that she would not be swayed, but her presence created some predictable problems.

"Flik, your men are ogling me again."

He glanced at Tengaar and sighed. "And?"

"Tell them to stop," Tengaar demanded. "It's very rude. I don't remember them being this rude two years ago."

Flik couldn't deny the truth of her statement. Even as he watched, several of his men were surreptitiously regarding her. Of course, they didn't do anything more than look, not with Hix riding protectively next to her. "Two years ago, you were still a little girl," Flik explained. "You're not so little any more. It's only natural that some of my men will take an interest in you."

She was not pleased by the news. "Order them to stop!"

"If I gave that order, my sergeants would roll their eyes and my men would probably start laughing. There's no way you can expect me to police the thoughts of every one of my men. I've already made it perfectly clear that anyone who comes close to hurting you will answer to me personally." Flik's patience was running out. "Now, get over it or get back on the boat. It's your choice."

"Don't think you can get rid of me that easily," Tengaar snapped. "I'm staying. But a true warrior from Warrior's Village would never stoop so low as to have lewd thoughts."

Actually, Flik was certain they probably did, but he didn't argue the point with her. Shu broke off his conversation with Rossgard and walked his horse over to Flik. The last soldiers were getting off the boats.

"Let's go over the plan one more time," Shu said.

"Okay. While you take Rossgard's company and head for Riou, you want me to ride in the direction of Greenhill and create a diversion. Is that right?"

Shu nodded. "It is imperative that you draw Highland's attention away from the northeast for at least three days. After that, you should move to rejoin us."

"I can do that."

Once the mercenaries were in formation, they set off, riding through Two River down the road to Greenhill. They rode beyond the forests north of the city. At this point, Shu took Rossgard's company and led them off to the northeast, while Flik took the remaining three companies -Tarrance's, Jerrim's, and Danel's- and continued on.

Flik kept the pace easy, for the day was hot, and he didn't want to tax the men and horses too early. They began to pass farms and villages, many of which were strikingly empty. The crops in the unattended fields were growing, but so were the weeds. Passing by one such field of immature corn, some of the men stopped for a moment of foraging. The sergeants, seeing Flik watching this, quickly hustled the soldiers back into the column. Tengaar nodded approvingly.

Flik knew that a lot of the people had fled south into Two River province. Indeed, they were probably heading for Dunan Castle, increasing its population while seeking protection from Highland. But those neglected lands were a bad sign. Who would harvest the crops when they ripened?

Hix was also studying those fields. "How are you feeling?" Flik asked.

The young man started, then made eye contact with Flik. "I'm okay." He lowered his voice so that Tengaar wouldn't hear. "But I'm a little nervous. I don't know how I'm going to do when I have to fight. You know that I don't want to hurt people."

"Yes, but you were willing to fight to save Tengaar."

"That's different," Hix answered. "When Tengaar's in danger, I don't think about any of that stuff. All I think about is protecting her." Flik nodded; now he understood why Tengaar was so adamant about coming along. Hix continued speaking. His next question caught Flik off guard. "Flik, does the killing…hurt you?"

"I," he swallowed. "I try not to think about it too much." Realizing how cold this sounded, he added, "It's not that I don't think about it. It's just that, when I'm fighting, I'm trying to survive and to make sure that my men survive. There's no time to think about the enemy. And when I'm not fighting-" he paused, sorting through his thoughts. "I've always fought for causes that I think are right: protecting people from an invader or for people's freedom. I try not to commit wanton acts of cruelty or atrocities. And I don't enjoy the killing." He looked at Hix, to see how he was absorbing the points. "That's really all I can say. Until we figure out some way for all of us to live peacefully, all I can do is protect people as well as I can."

Tengaar turned from watching the sergeants hauling men back into the line and trotted over to Flik and Hix. "Hey, what are you two talking about?"

"We were just talking about how he's going to protect you," Flik answered. Hix blushed and rubbed his scalp. The column got moving again.

Further north, the villages had people in them, but they were tense and angry. An old man finally told Flik that Highland was sending around foraging parties to collect food and weapons. Anyone who resisted brought down a terrible reprisal on their whole village. He pointed down the road, shaking his head sadly. A nearby village had been razed, all because a hidden assailant had shot a Highland officer during one of their patrols.

Flik and his men came upon the village not too long after that. They had plenty of advance warning, for it stood out as a charred blot amidst greenery. The northwest wind brought the smell of ash and worse things. Though there had only been a few houses, every last one of them was now a burnt ruin. An assortment of crows and larger carrion eaters were perched on those shells, warily watching as the mercenaries entered.

A large, brown dog looked up from worrying a long bone. The bone still had flesh on it. The flesh still bore the remains of clothing. With its bloody muzzle open in a pant and its tail wagging happily, the dog began to trot towards Flik. Before Flik could think to give any orders, several arrows whistled past him, striking the dog in the neck and flank. It whined once and then collapsed on the ground.

All Flik could do was shake his head sadly as one of his men rode by to collect the arrows. It wasn't the dog's fault that it had been forced to eat human flesh to survive, but it had to die all the same. No animal that developed that taste could ever be trusted.

He looked around the village once more. The birds had been disturbed by the shots, but many of them were returning to their perches, greedily eyeing the dog's corpse. Both Hix and Tengaar were pale, which didn't surprise Flik. They had not seen this level of atrocity during the Liberation War. He wondered if Jowy had approved this attack.

The sun was deep in the west, painting the sky above the distant mountains in red. No one wanted to camp anywhere near this place, so Flik led his men through this dead place, turning west when they came to the intersection. As they left the village behind, he could feel anger beginning to grow within him. He could see it in the faces of his men. They would need a good night's sleep to work out their emotions. Flik resolved to stop at the next good position.

Suddenly, they stumbled upon Highland soldiers. Their camp had been hidden behind a slight rise in the land, the smoke from their fires obscured in the haze of the setting sun. The Highland sentries were utterly surprised to see Flik and his men. For a moment, nobody moved. Then, with the images of the burnt village stoking his anger, Flik's sword was in his hand, and he rode Nightstar past the pickets, straight for the center of the camp. He could see that this was one of the Highland foraging parties. There were wagons with foodstuffs and caged animals, and even a herd of cattle.

The enemies were not prepared for battle, scrambling up from fires and grabbing for their weapons. Flik slashed at one such man and rode on, heading for the commander's tent. All around him, the Highlanders were beginning to run, but at the center of the camp, there was a little more resistance. He had to pull Nightstar up short in the face of several spearheads. The commander was already mounted, pointing with his sword and shouting to try and rally his men. Flik knew he had to end this battle before they began to recover, or the mercenaries would take heavy casualties.

Flik blocked one of the spears with his new shield, then extended his sword arm and cast a bolt of lightning at the enemy commander. The commander's horse reared, and its rider fell backwards to the ground. However, the Highland soldiers didn't appear to be disheartened. For a moment, they kept driving Flik back with their spears.

An arrow smashed into the shoulder of one of the Highlanders, causing him to drop his spear and clutch at the wound. More arrows hissed by Flik, and his men came up to help him. This was too much for their opponents, who turned and ran, throwing down their weapons. Flik, his anger still hot from seeing the burned village, heeled Nightstar after them. He led his men in pursuit until he became aware that the fires were dwindling behind him and he could see nothing in the darkness ahead. Here he called an end to the chase.

About thirty of his own men were with him, including Tengaar and Hix. Flik noted that Hix's sword had blood on it. Flik closed his eyes, wondering at the impulsiveness that led him to charge straight into the battle. He knew that those were not the actions of a wise commander. Clearing those thoughts from his head, he turned Nightstar towards the camp and led the men with him back to the tents.

Now that his head was clear, Flik could see that the encampment hadn't been very large. There'd probably been no more than a hundred soldiers in the patrol. He ordered some of his men to start securing the supplies, while he sent others to summon the three senior sergeants to him. Then he guided Nightstar in the direction of the commander's tent.

Just before he got there, Flik spotted a group of his men standing in a circle. Instinctively sensing something wrong, he rode over to see what was happening. One of the mercenaries spotted him, calling out to his fellows. They all turned to face Flik, and he could see fear and guilt written on their faces. On the ground in front of them was the corpse of a Highland soldier. A corpse whose hands were bound.

"What's going on here?" Flik asked. He was certain he already knew, but he wanted to hear what they had to say for themselves.

"He was hiding in the tent," one of the men answered. "Tried to jump the first guy who came in. He had a knife." Flik did not see one on the corpse. "He might've killed you, sir," the soldier concluded.

Flik stared at the speaker until the man looked away. The story was a lie, but how was he to deal with it? Every one of the men had a bloody weapon, but so did Flik. He looked at each of them, putting names and histories on the men. It was inevitable that some of the mercenaries had come from criminal backgrounds, men who had been thieves or murderers before they'd joined his unit. He picked out three men in the group that he suspected as having such a past.

But he couldn't accuse them based solely on suspicion. Moreover, he couldn't accuse all of them just because they were all there. A small voice in the back of Flik's head whispered that he ought to let them go, that they'd given the Highlander nothing more than he deserved, based on what Highland had done to the village.

Flik quashed the thought; he would not tolerate killing prisoners. Even if he couldn't bring the perpetrator to justice, he could make that point. Honor demanded that he do so. Tarrance, Jerrim, and Danel arrived as he was deliberating. Each senior sergeant studied the scene. Flik saw that they understood the situation.

"Tarrance," Flik barked. The guilty men started at the harshness of his voice. "These men have volunteered to be a burial detail. They will dig proper graves for each of the fallen enemy. They will not eat and they will not sleep until they have finished. Let this be a lesson that all the men should heed. We will respect the dignity of our opponents, even if they refuse to do the same for us." He took one last moment to read the expressions on the soldiers' faces. "Tarrance, get this detail moving!"

"Yes sir!" The senior sergeant called over guards to disarm and keep watch over the burial detail. The men of the detail meekly surrendered their weapons and marched out to begin the work. Flik retired to the commander's tent to hear the casualty reports. Four men had been killed and nine wounded during the skirmish. They'd captured more than a hundred head of cattle and numerous pigs and chickens, not to mention sacks of grain.

After hearing the reports, Flik ordered the senior sergeants to make sure that the pickets were watchful tonight. Then he explored the commander's tent. It contained only two rooms, and he found that a dinner had been set in the second room, which served as the sleeping quarters. He had no qualms about eating the food.

When Flik had finished, he opened up the trunk at the foot of the bed. It contained several uniform changes and a number of documents. He read the papers, learning that the commander's name was Geoff Angleson, a minor noble. His orders were to patrol and collect provisions from the villages around Greenhill City. The orders also directed him to respond with "overwhelming retribution" against any village that resisted. The documents were signed by Captain Harrod.

Flik pondered the news. Jowy was not the one who had ordered the atrocities. For some reason, that was a great relief to Flik. However, that meant that Jowy was no longer in command at Greenhill. Where was he now?

As Flik was putting the papers back into the trunk, his hand scraped against something at the very bottom. He pulled out a necklace with a tiny golden locket. The Circle Rune was etched onto its face. Casually clicking the trinket open, he found a few strands of blond hair on the inside, tied together with a piece of string. Making sure that none of the hair fell out, Flik closed up the locket and put it back in the trunk.

His mind flashed back to the Highland commander who'd tried to rally his men. That must've been Geoff Angleson. After he'd been hit by Flik's lightning, his comrades had pulled him away from the fighting. Flik didn't even know whether he was still alive. He wondered how Geoff felt about the orders. Was this man who had his lover's hair next to heart possibly the same person who burned the village and left corpses to rot?

Flik set aside those thoughts and left the tent to make a quick survey of the camp. His men had butchered some of the livestock and were setting them to roast. He'd put a tight guard around the alcohol that they'd gathered. He did not need any more breakdowns in discipline. Moving on, he found that Tengaar had appropriated a tent of her own, and Hix diligently stood guard outside. Hix was subdued, still absorbing the things he'd seen on this day.

When Flik was satisfied that everything was in order, he retired to the commander's tent and tried to sleep on the cot. The dreams that followed were a strange jumble. He found himself back in the burnt village, facing the dog again. However, the dog suddenly grew into a giant golden wolf and rushed straight at him. He brought up his shield to ward the blow, but the wolf had changed into Luca Blight, who laughed shrilly and swung his sword into Flik's shield. Flik wasn't able to withstand the force of the attacks. His shield shattered and he had to face Luca blade to blade. On the second clash, Flik's sword snapped, rendering him helpless. All he could do was stare up into the wild eyes of the monster.

He sat up and fumbled in the darkness, unsure as to where he was. The cot, not designed for sudden movements, collapsed under Flik, depositing him onto the packed dirt floor. That was when he recovered his wits and remembered that he was inside the tent. He picked himself off the ground, rubbing at his bruises, and walked out of the tent. Looking at the sky, he could see that the nearly full Scarlet Moon was setting in the west and the east was becoming pale. Dawn approached.

Not wanting to linger in this vulnerable position, Flik got his men moving early. The mercenaries gathered the supplies they could easily carry, set the rest of the livestock free to roam, and then set the camp on fire. Flik didn't like burning the goods, especially when they belonged to the people of Greenhill, but he couldn't let the Highland army come back and take them again. He didn't have the time to find any rightful owners.

With the pillar of fire and smoke at their back, Flik led his men west, in the direction of Greenhill City. As he rode along, he felt for the golden locket that he carried with him. He did not know if he would ever meet Geoff Angleson, but he couldn't leave that treasure to the flames. Returning to the task at hand, he watched as several of Jerrim's men passed him, heading out to scout in front of the main force.

The morning was bright and clear, only a few wisps of white marred the blue sky. The mild air of dawn quickly became warm, and then hot. It was not going to be a good day for hard riding, even with remounts. For the two hours, the ride was uneventful, but with the sun rising higher in the sky, the scouts returned with the news that a large force of cavalry was approaching from Greenhill.

Flik turned his men off the road, heading towards the southwest. A few minutes later, he saw the first of the Highland cavalry, their scouts. He kept the pace at a trot; there was no need to exhaust his horses yet. A larger body of Highlanders came into view, close to a thousand riders. They were moving quickly to the south, trying to intercept Flik before he got around them.

These were not Culgan's men, Flik decided, after studying their flags. Culgan understood about the Fire Spears and wouldn't make such an impetuous move. This commander had obviously never seen Fire Spears in action. Flik intended to teach him a lesson.

"Ready Fire Spears!"

That command raced up and down his formation, and they spread out, forming into a long line. The Highlanders increased their pace to a charge, obviously hoping to break Flik's feeble line. They weren't going to get the chance.

"Fire Spears, attack!"

Coming at a gallop, the first ranks of the enemy cavalry had no chance to avoid the fire that rushed in on them. The majority of the riders were unscathed, but their attack was halted. Now Flik called for his own men to gallop, opening up the distance between them and the Highlanders. With the flames separating them, he turned back to the west, then the northwest.

Once he had regained the west road, Flik reduced the pace back to a walk. The Highland commander seemed content to keep his men about a half-mile back, blocking the direct route back to Two River. Through the rest of the morning and into the afternoon the slow chase continued. Flik allowed the roads to guide him, and he turned north once he was west of Greenhill City. Here the land was more wooded, the road winding back and forth around hills and copses of trees.

It was a fairly pleasant ride, except for the fact that Flik had to be on guard for any sudden lunges by their pursuers. At one point, he was startled by a distant cry. Looking up, he saw a griffon soaring overhead. Several of his men readied their bows, but Flik ordered them to hold their fire. The griffon circled once and flew away to the north.

Late in the afternoon, the Highland commander finally made his move, detaching half of his men to try and race around Flik's left flank and get in front of him. Flik had his men lay down a wall of fire to the west using the Fire Spears. After this was done, he brought the pace up to a canter. The tactics were effective. The flames forced the flanking movement to detour, and the mercenaries were able to stay ahead of both Highland groups.

Flik pushed his men now. They were well to the north of Greenhill, and the eastern forests gave way to rolling plains. He led his unit out onto them, abandoning the road to go cross-country. The setting sun was at his back. Only when the Highland forces were well out of sight did he allow the pace to slow. Even so, he set double pickets when they stopped for the night.

The following morning dawned with a layer of mist over the terrain. Flik and his men proceeded to the east cautiously. He knew that this was the day he was supposed to meet up with Shu and Riou, but he still had to avoid the enemy long enough to do so. Much to his chagrin, when the mist began to burn off in the middle of the morning, the Highland cavalry was only a mile behind him. It appeared that the chase was going to continue.

It did not last very long. As Flik led his cavalry around a set of hills, he caught sight of another set of warriors. A long column of knights was approaching his position, their red and blue surcoats radiant in the sunlight. There were at least a thousand of them. Leading this force were Shu and Riou, with Rossgard's company in the van. Flik quickly turned his men towards their allies. The Highlanders, seeing these reinforcements, hesitated and turned away, deciding not to give battle.

The path to the south, back to Two River City and Dunan Castle, was clear.


	48. Chapter 48 Test of Strategy

**Chapter 48 –Test of Strategy**

"Hey, this is just like the good old days," Viktor said jovially. He took a deep swallow from his mug of beer.

"Yup," Humphrey replied. He took a slightly more moderate pull from his mug.

Flik shrugged his shoulders noncommittally. If they were really trying to recreate the "good old days," then Odessa would've been there too. Not that he was unhappy to be reunited with Humphrey. In fact, seeing his old comrade riding alongside Riou with the Matilda Knights had been a huge and pleasant surprise.

Humphrey had changed very little in the two years since the Liberation War. The warrior was tall and powerfully muscled, wearing a green tunic, dark brown pants, and a tan cloak over his shoulders. His giant sword, the Muramasa, was leaning against the back of his chair.

There was a sudden burp and gout of flame across the table, causing both Viktor and Flik to flinch. Humphrey took it all in stride. When Viktor recovered his composure, he yelled at the fourth person at the table, "Come on, Futch, get your dragon to stop doing that, or I'll jam the Star Dragon Sword down its throat!"

The Star Dragon Sword rumbled in its sheath. "I do not appreciate being used as a device for cheap threats."

Futch was much younger than the other three men around the table. Thin and gawky, he had not yet attained his adult height or musculature. He was dressed in a long purple tunic, black pants, and a winged band that held his brown hair in check. Blushing slightly, he answered, "Don't get angry with Bright. It's not his fault that he can't control everything yet."

Futch was another veteran from the old Liberation Army. He'd been an apprentice Dragon Knight two years ago, but had lost his dragon during the war. Flik knew that Futch and Humphrey were interested in going to Harmonia to research dragons. Somewhere in Matilda, Riou had helped Futch acquire a new dragon. The dragon was young; Futch could hold it easily in both arms. Befitting its name, Bright was completely white, except for a pair of bright blue eyes. Futch was feeding it chunks of meat that had been carefully cut up.

Viktor felt at his forehead. "Damn. That thing nearly singed my eyebrows off."

"They'll grow back," Humphrey observed.

"Bright is not 'that thing,'" Futch objected. "He's a baby dragon. He'll probably end up smarter than you are."

Flik observed that he'd knocked over his drink when Bright burped. He wondered if he could signal to Leona for another, but at that moment the door to the tavern burst open. Nina bounded in.

"Oh! Sir Flik, this is where you were. I thought you said you'd be training your men this morning. I went down to the practice fields and waited and waited, but you never came."

That would be because he had lied. Humphrey's eyebrows briefly shot up, maybe even a quarter inch. For him, that was an expression of complete astonishment.

Nina would not be deterred. "There's going to be a cook-off at the restaurant. Let's go, Flik! It'll be exciting. Maybe they'll even pick one of us to judge."

Flik looked at his compatriots for help. Humphrey judiciously took another swig from his drink. Viktor started chuckling. Futch asked, "Isn't she a little young for you?"

Nina glared at Futch. "I'm older than you are, that's for sure!"

"Maybe, but I'm much more mature. I've taken care of dragons and fought in battle."

"I helped Lord Shin and Lady Teresa stay hidden from the Highland Army."

Futch stuck his tongue out at Nina. She reciprocated. Bright wriggled out of Futch's grip and jumped on the table, sniffing at Flik's spilled beer. That drew Futch's attention.

"No, Bright! That's not good for you." He snatched the dragon pup back before Bright could taste the liquid.

As Futch was collecting his dragon, Flik heard the deep muffled gong of the signal bell. He tilted his head in the direction of the noise, as if that would help him hear better. That first strike meant that Shu was summoning people to a meeting. The number of following strikes would determine who needed to attend.

The bell sounded again. A few people stirred in their seats. Then the noise rang out a third time. Viktor and Flik stood up; the meeting would include them, at least. There was a fourth gong. The conversations in the tavern grew quieter. Flik started walking towards the door. The fifth sounding stopped him cold. The tavern was nearly silent, except for the scraping of Humphrey's chair as he got up. The commanders of every unit in the army had just been summoned.

And finally, the bell signaled the sixth time. Everyone in the tavern started moving again. The soldiers quickly chugged down the remainder of their drinks and started collecting their equipment. Flik ran over to the door, pulled it open, and sprinted down the entry hall with Viktor and Humphrey at his heels. The Tablet of Stars stood without its guardian. Soldiers rushed past the three men, called to their barracks by the sixth bell.

The great hall was crowded, the air brimming with nervous anticipation. Shu glanced quickly at Viktor and Flik as they entered, motioning the two men to join him on the dais with Riou, Fitcher, Ridley, and Nanami. As the two men stepped up onto the platform, Gilbert slunk into the room, the last to arrive. Shu cleared his throat and the room went still.

"Lord Riou, I have called this meeting because I have just received distressing, though not unexpected, news. The ships arriving from Radat have told me that the Highland Army has appeared on the east banks of the Dunan River."

"Have they occupied the town?" Viktor interrupted.

"They don't know," Fitcher answered. "We were expecting another report in a few days, but they might take the town before then. All indications are that this army is formidable."

Shu nodded. "It is the Highland Third Army, commanded by General Kiba Windamier and his son, Klaus."

"A full Highland army?" Flik asked. "How many soldiers will that be?"

"They will need to leave some men behind for garrison duty, but yes, it is essentially a full army. I expect that we will be facing nearly twenty thousand soldiers."

There was some nervous shifting among the assembled commanders. Luc, leaning against the back wall, muttered, "Great. At least we aren't outnumbered by too much."

"Enough!" Ridley growled, taking a step forward. "Now is not the time to hesitate. We must put aside our selfish fears for the sake of all. We must strike the Highlanders as a united army, and we must strike immediately."

"I agree," Shu said, much more subdued than the kobold. "Lord Riou, our best chance to defend South Window province is to fight the Highland Army at Radat. If they make it any further into the region, we will find it difficult to stop them short of Dunan Castle."

Riou nodded and spoke to the commanders. "I want to thank all of you who have agreed to fight alongside me. Many of you have given up position, comfort, and peace to come here and liberate this land. I am grateful for each of you. Now the army is assembled. Now we take the first step to stopping Luca Blight's madness and ending the war. Today, I order the New State Army to the field. We will fight!"

Flik cheered, pumping his fist in the air, hearing cheers all around him. Only Shu and Nanami were quiet, the former rubbing his chin and pondering some plan, the latter frowning unhappily.

"You are dismissed to your units," Shu announced. "Tai Ho, Amada, take the fleet out. Interdict any Highland moves across the lake. The army will march in two hours. Flik, your men will provide the forward scouts. That is all."

There was much to do in those two hours. Flik ran a quick inspection of the men, their equipment, and the horses. His unit had grown in size, now up to five hundred men. He had the spare Fire Spears distributed. Tengaar and Hix arrived, ready to join him in battle. Satisfied that everything was in order, Flik led his mounted archers out beyond the gates.

The army was in the process of assembling. Looking on the soldiers, Flik was struck by the assortment of people Riou had brought together. He saw a squad of Zexens running past infantry in the colors of South Window. The Red and Blue Knights of Matilda trotted next to a company of Ridley's kobolds. Archers from Greenhill were gathering arrows. Somewhat surprisingly, Teresa had insisted that she would lead her people in battle, though Shin was with her to help. Nearby, a company of veterans from Muse was taking directions from Humphrey. The Winghordes were scattered about, but ready to take to the air as soon as the army began moving.

There were also civilians, mainly women, waiting to see the army off. Yoshino was tightly hugging a very embarrassed Freed. Nina came charging over to Flik, holding a long pink ribbon in her hands. She held it up to him.

"Take this into battle, Sir Flik! It's my token for you."

Reluctantly, he accepted the ribbon. Nina began to say something else, but Barbara and Leona suddenly shoved her out of the way.

"You look after Viktor," Barbara demanded. "If anything happens to him, I'll beat the stuffing out of you."

"I'll see what I can do," Flik said.

"Don't you die either," Leona added. "Viktor would probably go to pieces if you died."

Flik looked away from the two women, out across the field, to where Viktor was organizing the mercenaries. The fortress in East Muse seemed like it was years ago, rather than a few months past. Viktor turned in his direction and waved jauntily, as if they were planning nothing more than an afternoon stroll. Flik waved back.

When everything was in order, Riou appeared. Nanami walked on his right side, and Eilie was at his left. Rina and Bolgan were a few paces back. Shu and Apple came last, Apple whispering fiercely to the senior strategist, who nodded in return. They arrived at the head of the army. Eilie spoke some words to Riou, but Flik was too far away to hear them. She looked as though she wanted to hug him, but held back.

As Riou moved to mount his horse, a murmur passed through the men. Something had appeared on the road in front of the army, forming out of thin air. Flik recognized the equine figure immediately. Tengaar also recognized it, and she avoided looking in its direction. This was the unicorn of Unicorn's Forest, who had proclaimed Hix a True Warrior and had promised to aid Riou's cause. Now that same white unicorn approached Riou and bowed down on his front legs before him, so that his long horn touched the ground.

It was an invitation, one that stood at variance to the unicorn's own law- that only a maiden might mount the unicorn. Riou did not hesitate in accepting the invitation. Nanami quickly followed her brother, mounting behind him on the unicorn's bare back. The unicorn stood back up to his full height, and the noon sun flashed off his ivory horn. The army cheered, thousands of voices stirring the air, and Riou pointed down the road. The campaign had begun.

Flik spent most of the remainder of that day rotating among his squads, making sure that everything was running smoothly. The day was hot, and he was glad he was riding up with the scouts. Looking to the rear, he could see the huge plume of dust that the army was kicking up. His men weren't the only scouts in front of the army. Overhead, the Winghordes kept watch as well, gliding from tree to tree, or staying aloft for longer periods of time.

Occasionally one of them would appraise Flik of people they saw further down the road. These turned out to mostly be merchants or people travelling towards Dunan Castle to set up residence there. Flik encouraged the travelers to wait at the side of the road for the army to pass, so that they wouldn't foul the march.

Another one of his duties was to select a suitable location for the army to encamp for the night. Once they were beyond the scattered forests near the Cave of the Wind, this job became easier. He choose a flat field just off the road, with no large hills or forests to block the sight lines. As evening fell, his men served to guide the units of the army to the location. Stragglers continued to arrive long after that.

There was a dinner for the unit leaders at Riou's command tent. Here Shu explained he expected the army would arrive outside of Radat the following evening, and the battle would take place one or two days later. When the meal was finished, Flik retired to his unit's tents and slept.

At the first hints of dawn, Flik was ready to lead his mounted archers out. Another day in the lead position awaited them. They covered ground at a steady pace, passing in front of South Window City before noon. The gates to the city were closed, and men stood on the walls, grimly watching the surrounding land. The great estates around the city were also very quiet. A few field workers fled at the approach of Flik's men, leaving olive trees unattended.

To the east, the land became hilly, with long belts of woods meandering along streambeds. Further on, the forests became denser, and the hills in the south built up into a bluff. Following the road to the top of a gentle ridge, Flik looked down and saw distantly the broad, sluggish Dunan River.

A Winger flapped out of the sky, settling down next to Flik. He looked over and saw, much to his displeasure, that it was Sid. Sid cocked his head towards Flik and laughed slowly. "I see…" He laughed some more. "Soon to be corpses. They ride towards you. Twenty marked for doom. Just beyond the next rise." He cackled darkly. "Do you enjoy…feeding the worms?" He took off before Flik could answer, not that Flik had thought of a response.

He cast Sid from his mind. Flik knew he had only a couple of minutes to prepare for action. He ordered his men back below the reverse side of the hill, screening them from view. When the Highlanders came over the crest ten minutes later, Flik and his men were waiting to spring the ambush. After a sharp, but one-sided skirmish, he made sure his men took prisoners.

He detailed a few men to send the captives back to the main army, then rode further on with the rest of his unit. Now his approach was more careful. With the sun in the west, he didn't want to blunder over any larger Highland pickets. The Winghordes proved invaluable in this effort, finally warning him of a much larger force blocking his path forward. Flik halted his men, sending a message back to Shu informing him that Radat town was in enemy hands. An hour later, Shu himself rode up to observe the situation. Viktor, Riou, Nanami, and Apple were also with him.

Shu observed the town and shook his head. "I wonder, will they come up out of the town at us, or do they intend to try and make us attack?"

"I could walk down and try to find out," Viktor offered. "What about it, Riou, want to check on Radat with me?"

Shu forestalled any answer from Riou. "What are you thinking, Viktor? Do you really believe I'd allow you and Riou to walk into such danger?"

"I'm good at these sort of things. Did I ever tell you about the time I got Tir McDohl out of Gregminster?"

"Out of the question," Shu said tersely.

Viktor looked down at the ground. "Just making a suggestion."

One of the Winghordes dropped down with a report. "A group of Highlanders approaches under a white banner."

Riou looked at Shu. "What do you think?"

"Let us hear what they have to say," Shu answered. "I do not think Kiba is the type to spring an underhanded trap."

Within a quarter hour, the Highland delegation had arrived. Flik, having been given a description of Kiba Windamier, was surprised to see a man fitting the report leading the delegation. The leader's eyes quickly swept Flik and his group, appraising them all. Then he spoke. "I am Kiba Windamier, here to speak with Riou, adopted son of Genkaku."

The commander of the Third Army was a robust man in plate armor that reflected the red light of the sun. His bald head was uncovered, and his blond beard made his face look stern, though not cruel. A slightly built, younger man rode next to him. This was his son Klaus, the reports said. Klaus' demeanor was not particularly martial, with his black hair trailing into his closed eyes and a calm expression on his face. He was wearing blue pants, a beige tunic, and a purple jacket overtop of the tunic.

Riou was still astride the unicorn. He rode out in front of Flik and met Kiba's challenge. "I'm the one you seek. I'm Lord Riou, commander of the New State Army."

Some of the Highlanders had recoiled at the sight of Riou riding the unicorn, but Kiba remained unfazed. "Well met, Lord Riou. I had thought that you would be hiding in your castle while others do your fighting, but here I find you at the head of your army. Good man!"

Riou met Kiba's gaze. "Why have you come here? Surely you don't think I'm going to surrender?"

Kiba laughed once. "Surrender? I wouldn't insult you like that. I came to see what sort of man my opponent was. Now I have seen the resolve in your eyes. And, as we are each here with our armies, we should at least have a decent battle. I hope that you will provide a good challenge, it's what keeps me going these days."

"You shouldn't underestimate him," Klaus warned softly. "He is here because he has confidence in his army. He is here because he believes he will have victory." Klaus opened his eyes and glanced at Shu. "Isn't that your reasoning, disciple of Silverbergs?"

"I have already defeated you once, whelp," Shu answered. "If you can reason that far, then you should save the lives of your men and retreat at once."

Klaus' cheek twitched slightly, but he gave no other visible sign of emotion. "You should not despise my abilities. Don't think you are so much greater than I am simply because you got lucky once. You may have studied under Mathiu Silverberg, but I went to Soledt in Harmonia."

"Enough," Kiba interrupted, looking at Klaus. "You must not let him rattle you, my son." He turned his attention to Shu. "Whatever you may think of your skills, is it not best said that battle is the true test of strategy? Tomorrow we shall see whether your presumption is correct or whether my son will triumph."

"Fair enough," Shu said. Kiba turned his mount and led his delegation back towards Radat. When they were out of earshot, Shu spoke. "Flik, you will join us back at the main camp for a strategy meeting. Tell your pickets to be vigilant for any Highland moves."

Viktor was smiling. "Look's like we're finally going to have a big battle. I haven't been this excited since we charged into Gregminster."

"Yeah, but that was at the end of the war," Flik replied. "I don't think tomorrow's battle will be the last of this one."

"I know," Viktor answered. "Still, if everything goes right, we'll be that much closer to the end."

He left with Shu and the others. Flik remained behind to give orders to his men, then rode back along the road to the main encampment. Even with night having fallen, the camp was full of activity, with men checking their weapons and armor. Undoubtedly others were blowing off steam by gambling on dice or cards. If they were, they kept those activities out of Flik's sight.

Riou's command tent was a large pavilion, and the generals had assembled around a table that had a map of the region. Flik was the last to arrive. Viktor nudged him in the ribs when he took his place. Shu coughed once to gain everyone's attention and motioned to Apple to begin the briefing.

She nervously finished cleaning her glasses and then started speaking. "If you will look at the map, I will address the current situation. A significant percentage of the Highland Third Army has crossed the Dunan River, occupied Radat, and taken up positions outside the town. The Winghordes have estimated their numbers to be around fifteen thousand. They are a mix of heavy cavalry, mounted archers, and basic infantry. Furthermore, a detachment from the Highland Fourth Army has also been spotted to the south of the town. The estimates for that force are five thousand men."

"That's a lot of enemies," Viktor interrupted. "How are we going to stop them, strategist?"

"It does not matter what they do," Shu responded. "If they wish to attack frontally, then we'll meet their attack with one of our own. They may have a lot of men, but their lines of defense are dangerously shallow. We will focus all of our efforts on driving into the town and dividing the Highland forces in two. Then we can easily eliminate the separate groups."

He began placing lead figurines on the map. "These are the positions you will assume tomorrow morning. The infantry will lead this operation, with the Matilda Knights to cover our southern flank, and the archers and mages in a support position. This will be a general advance straight at the Highland positions. Nobody is to stop until we are in the town or you receive countervailing orders. Are there any questions?"

Flik looked at the map. His unit would be in the support line, directly behind Viktor's men. It was not a bad location, though he would not be able to use the Fire Spears at all during the fighting. While he was thinking about that, Ridley spoke up.

"Lord Shu, I would like to express my reservations regarding the role you intend to have my kobolds play in the upcoming battle."

"What would those reservations be, General Ridley?" Shu asked, his voice holding a bit of an edge.

A quick perusal of the other positions showed Flik that Ridley's kobolds were in the very center of the infantry line, and slightly in front of it. If Shu's plan was executed with the kobolds in that position, they would certainly suffer many casualties. Flik understood what Ridley's concerns were even before the kobold general voiced them.

"If I may speak freely, Lord Shu, I do not think that the temperament of my men is suited for the plan you have given to me. Specifically, I wish you'd explain your reasoning in more detail. I don't think either my men or my fellow commanders will understand my movements-"

Shu cut him off harshly. "Understanding is not important. Lord Riou has entrusted me with the tactics of this battle and I intend to win it. In order to do so, I need you to follow my plan _exactly_, General Ridley. You must follow it without hesitation and without doubt. If you cannot do that, I will have you replaced with someone who can. Now, will you or won't you obey orders?"

Flik blinked uneasily. Shu was being a little overbearing, in his opinion. While the strategist had every right to the placement of troops, making sure that the concerns of the generals were met was also an important duty. He had the impression that Mathiu would've handled this differently.

Ridley growled in displeasure. "I know how to obey orders, commander. Your plan will be followed out to the letter." He stalked bitterly from the tent.

If anyone else had any concerns, they did not voice them. Shu's stern expression faded, replaced by the hint of a smile. "Well then, I believe this briefing is finished. I assure you, tomorrow you will see my strategy in action."

Flik looked at the retreating figure of Ridley. He hoped Shu's statement was fact, and not bluster. Then he shook his head. In the end, the battlefield would decide the truth of the matter.


	49. Chapter 49 Failed to Foresee

**Chapter 49 – Failed to Foresee**

The following dawn was clear and bright, the air warming rapidly. Flik gathered in his men from their forward pickets and led them to the assigned position. The whole army was in motion, men forming into lines of battle. Flik wheeled his mounted archers in behind Viktor's ranks of infantry. He could see Lady Teresa's unit of archers off to the right and, more distantly, the mages that Luc commanded. Light from the rising sun glinted off of thousands of spearpoints in front of Flik. Everything was ready.

Except that nobody sent any signal to begin the advance. Initially, this didn't bother Flik at all. He'd been in many different military organizations in his life, and the concept of "hurry up and do nothing" was not new to him. Undoubtedly there was some last minute scouting going on, or perhaps Shu had found something in the plan that needed adjustment.

The sun rose higher and higher into the morning sky as the army stood in readiness. The day was becoming quite hot. Flik wiped sweat from his forehead and tried not to fret about what might be going wrong. Nightstar bent down to graze, and Flik fought valiantly to keep his horse's head up, just in case things started moving. The waiting was wearying, and he started rotating squads to stand down briefly. After a while, he rode forward to find Viktor.

Flik found him at the head of his infantry, gazing down towards the town of Radat. The Highland army was clearly visible in the distance, waiting to receive the attack.

"You know anything about why we're waiting?" Flik asked.

"Sent a messenger to find out about an hour ago." Viktor sounded perturbed. "The reply was that 'the battle will begin when Shu orders it, and not one moment before.' Damn it all, we're sitting on our asses and wasting the day!"

Flik was struck by the ferocity of his friend's anger. His concerns came back to the front of his mind. "You don't think…maybe, that Riou has lost his nerve?"

"It's not Riou, it's that strategist," Viktor answered darkly. "He's so wrapped up in making sure his brilliant strategy works that he's going to end up costing us the battle. You saw how he snapped at Ridley last night, didn't you? There'll be trouble from that, I think."

"Shu hasn't made a mistake yet," Flik answered. "He might have some scheme prepared for this battle." He could hear the lack of conviction in his own voice. For all that the strategist had done right, most of that had been on defense, or in small actions. Would Shu be able to get them a victory in a major battle?

Flik went back to his men. The waiting continued. He tried to close his eyes to rest, but that seemed to make him more tired. Finally, with the sun past noon, the horns from Riou's unit sounded the advance. A jolt of energy coursed through Flik, cutting through his lethargy in a moment. Flagging spearpoints suddenly jumped back upright and began to move forward. The battle had started.

The last rank of Viktor's men started moving. Flik ordered his men forward as well. From his mounted position, he could see the battlefield well. The Highlanders were closing ranks, preparing to repel the assault. In a few minutes, the first of Ridley's kobolds would be within range of the enemy archers.

Then the plan fell apart. At first, Flik couldn't believe what he was seeing, but he finally had to accept it. The kobolds were pulling out of line, marching towards the left, and passing right in front of Viktor's men. Viktor had no choice except to stop his advance before his men got tangled up with Ridley's. Flik swore and had his men stop too.

"Hix!" Flik shouted. "Ride forward and find out what the hell Ridley is doing." Hix nodded and sped his horse off in the direction of the kobolds. Tengaar followed him.

Meanwhile, Flik took stock of the situation. The rest of the New State Army had marched on for several moments more but was now coming to an uneven halt. The departure of the kobolds had left a gap in the first line, a critical flaw. Across the field, the Highland Army was suddenly in motion. Their cavalry was coming forward, and Flik knew instinctively that they were going to lunge for the gap.

Never hesitating, Flik yelled, "Follow me!" and brandished his sword. He heeled Nightstar to a trot and plunged towards the hole in the first line. As he did so, the infantry on his right and left started to fall back.

Apple, on a shaggy pony, was waiting for Flik when his men arrived at the center of the line. She looked frazzled, but spoke steadily. "Flik, Shu has decided that we can't hold our current positions. We're going to have to retreat. Both Highland armies are moving against us. We've sent Camus and Miklotov to deal with the Fourth army, but we need you to hold off the Third. You'll have support from Luc and Teresa, for a while, and Viktor will be stationed to guard the road behind you. Good luck."

"What happened with Ridley?" Flik asked before Apple could ride off.

"I don't know," she answered. "Maybe Shu understands, but he hasn't told me."

She left, and Flik turned to the task of arraying his men to meet the enemy. The Highland cavalry was already charging, closing the distance rapidly. He'd have very little time to prepare any kind of defense.

Lightning flashed out of the cloudless sky, forking and blasting into the ranks of the onrushing cavalry. The rune in Flik's right hand stirred in response. He risked a glance to the rear, trying to determine the source of the attack, and saw the archers of Greenhill behind him with Jeane standing at their forefront. They launched a volley of arrows over his head. The wind suddenly whipped up around Flik, and he faced back towards the Highlanders. That gust became a gale, raking across the line of the cavalry and stopping the charge cold.

"Fire Spears!" Flik shouted above the roar. "Now!"

Momentarily, Flik and his men were safely separated from the enemy by a wall of flame, but more Highlanders appeared where the fire ended. Arrows rained down from the enemy side too, drawing shouts of pain from around Flik.

Using both the Fire Spears and help from Jeane and Luc, Flik was able to keep the Highland Army at bay for half an hour, but eventually they slipped around his flanks. It was time to retreat. He turned his men and started back up the road, away from Radat, following Lady Teresa's archers.

Further up the road was the sanctuary of Viktor's infantry, now standing behind hastily prepared breastworks, little more than logs thrown down onto the ground. Flik looked behind him and saw that another formation of cavalry was coming at his men. Their leader looked particularly baleful: a gigantic man in silver plate-mail and a horned helmet, who was wielding a double-bladed battleaxe.

With Lady Teresa's men passing through Viktor's fortifications, there was no way Flik could ride to safety, so he wheeled his unit around, intending to bring the Fire Spears to bear. It was too late. The Highland cavalry was crashing into his men, and all he could worry about was survival.

Several enemies spotted Flik immediately, his blue outfit making him stand out in the press. He batted a lance-head away with his shield from one side and thrust with his sword at the other. With adversaries on either side, he spurred Nightstar through the middle, rather than try to fight them both. He escaped those two, but there were plenty of other foes.

A blade flashed before him, and Flik reflexively parried it, driving his counter deep into his opponent's armpit. Only then did he see the look of shock on the Highlander's young face, close enough that Flik could see his wide blue eyes clearly. Flik pulled his sword free, looking ahead, gauging where the next threat would come from.

He made his way to a knot of his own men, slipping behind them so that he could assess the melee. It was not going well. The Highlanders had the weight of numbers and were isolating his men into small groups. As much as he hated it, Flik knew that he could not win here. It was time to call for a retreat and save what he could.

Before Flik could give the order, there was a roar from behind him. Viktor's infantry were rushing down the road towards the fighting, with Viktor himself at their head. In seconds, his men joined the fighting, adding their numbers to Flik's men.

The Highlanders continued fighting too. A wedge of them smashed through the men around Flik, and he had to battle for his life again. He smashed his shield into the face of an enemy who ventured too close, then launched a bolt of lightning at a Highland officer. Viktor came up alongside Flik, slashing and thrusting with the Star Dragon Sword, and the battle ebbed away.

"What are you doing here?" Flik shouted. "You're supposed to be holding the road."

"Some way to greet me when I've come to pull you out of the fire," Viktor yelled back cheerfully. "I'm not going to abandon you just to follow orders."

Flik looked back towards Radat. More Highlanders were flowing into the fighting. Moreover, the man with the horned helmet was fighting his way towards Flik.

"We're in a lot of trouble here," Flik mentioned to Viktor.

"So what?" Viktor answered. "Hey, do you want horned head or should I take him when he gets to us?" Flik was struck by the lightness in his friend's tone. Viktor was smiling, even in the middle of calamity. "Get your men out of here," he said. "We'll cover your retreat."

Flik swallowed a lump in his throat. "I don't like abandoning you in the middle of a fight either."

The Highlanders surged back up towards Viktor and Flik. Once again, fighting became more important than talking. Flik fell back on his training, his consciousness subsumed by the rhythm of the fighting. Swords clashed against his shield. His sword rang against armor, sometimes crunching bone, and sometimes tearing flesh.

Finally, Flik made a mistake. He was a fraction of a second too slow, and a Highland sword slipped past his guard and slashed into his ribs from the left. He gasped at the pain, nearly losing his sword grip due to the sudden weakness. Viktor quickly came to his rescue, the Star Dragon Sword driving the Highlander away.

Flik swayed in the saddle, his vision filled with motes of light. When he could see clearly again, he became aware that many of his men were looking back at him. He sat up straighter and held his bloody sword aloft. "I'm fine!" he shouted. "Keep fighting!"

"You're not," Viktor said, under the din of the fighting.

Flik grimaced as he brought his sword down and inspected the damage. The leather of his blue coat seemed to have warded the cutting blade, but it hadn't mitigated the blunt force of the attack. "It's only a bruise," Flik argued.

"Your pride is going to get both of us killed," Viktor argued back. "Since you have the smaller force, you should retreat first. I promise I'll follow right behind you."

A sharp pain from his ribs almost made Flik gasp, but he gritted his teeth and let it out as a hiss. "Okay. I'm going, but you'd better be right behind me." Flik raised his voice and shouted as loudly as he was able, "Back! Back! Mounted archers to me!"

His men extracted themselves as best they could, following Flik away from the fighting. He didn't look back, but kept his eyes firmly fixed on the road ahead. The redness of the setting sun seemed a mockery of the day's fighting.

It wasn't long before he overtook the remainder of the New State Army. They were astride the road, in lines of battle, waiting for him. Shu rode out from the ranks to greet Flik. The strategist was anything but sanguine about the situation.

"Where is Viktor?" Shu demanded sharply. "He abandoned his position covering the withdrawal and forced me to deploy the whole army back into battle formation."

Flik glowered at Shu, to little visible effect. "Viktor led his men to rescue mine. It's by his efforts that I'm here now." Neither man spoke after that, engaging in a staring contest. Finally, Flik's injured ribs began to hurt again, robbing him of his strength. He looked away. "What happened with Ridley?"

Shu's response was not immediate. Finally, he conceded, "I failed to foresee his actions, that's all. Even a strategist such as myself can make a mistake. Now then, prepare your men to move. We'll continue falling back. I intend to put as much distance as I can between us and the enemy."

"Are you abandoning Viktor?" Flik could feel his anger surging again. Even if he had to go alone, he would fight alongside his friend.

"You needn't worry," Shu answered. "As you can see, Viktor has escaped the field of battle."

Flik swung around in the saddle. Shu's words were correct. Viktor and his men were raggedly marching towards the remainder of the army. Looking haggard, but full of spirit, he walked up to Shu to give his report.

"They broke off the fighting. I think they've decided it's getting too dark to continue. I tell you, it's a good thing the battle started as late as it did, otherwise they'd still be chasing us."

"I am well aware of that," Shu declared. "Now then, organize your unit for the march. We've still got a ways to go."

The army slowly continued its westerly move through the late evening. They were aided by the fact that it was summer, and the days were long. Flik's injury continued to bother him, but he managed to stay astride Nightstar until the army finally stopped to make camp. Flik was immediately summoned to another strategy meeting. As before, they gathered in Riou's large tent, around an oak table with a map of the province on it. The mood of this gathering was markedly different than the one that had preceded the battle. Apple glumly gave an assessment of the situation.

"We have successfully broken contact with the two Highland armies. Though casualties for some units were high, as a whole the New State Army remains intact. However, the actions of Lord Ridley have significantly weakened our strength."

"What about Lord Ridley?" Miklotov asked. "Did he give any reason for his cowardly actions?"

Camus shook his head. "Undoubtedly he decided that the interests of his kobolds outweighed the needs of the army. I fear that the Jowston Alliance's greatest weakness has shown itself."

"But he was always shouting about the need to act together," Chaco argued. "Was all of that just bluster? Arrogant bastard!"

Flik was busy looking at Shu and Riou. The two of them had calmly listened to the tirade, but neither offered any answers. He ignored the pain in his side to voice his own concerns. "Without the kobolds, we'll have difficulty matching Kiba in a set battle."

Shu shook his head. "Ridley's reasons are his own. We cannot waste any more time speculating on them or in useless anger about what he's done. We must lay out a strategy for the next couple of days. Tomorrow we will continue our redeployment, passing north and west of South Window."

"Pardon me, but may I take my men to the defense of South Window?" Freed asked.

"I'm afraid that I must refuse," Shu replied. "In fact, I've ordered General Arnhem to declare South Window an open city."

"But why?" Freed stammered. "Is the New State Army going to surrender the people of South Window without fighting?"

Shu's gaze was icy. "I cannot afford to weaken the army any further by sending detachments to hold the cities. Listen carefully: the ownership of South Window will not decide this war. I will not waste resources trying to hold things that have only emotional value and no strategic value. Do I make myself understood?"

Freed turned to Riou, trying to see if there was any difference of opinion. Riou remained silent, deferring to Shu. Nanami, who was sitting at Riou's side, looked extremely concerned. Flik watched the exchange, trying not to wince from his own pain.

When no one else spoke, Shu nodded to himself. "You should all get some rest and tend to your units. Do not worry yourselves about the future. That is my job. Good night."

As the meeting broke up, Flik remained a few moments after, attempting to gather his strength. Viktor came up beside him, a worried look on his face. "Hey, buddy, you all right?"

"I'm fine," Flik answered through labored breaths. He wasn't, though, and slumped down on the table, vision blurring. He heard Viktor shout but couldn't make out the words. His vision faded to black. The last thing he heard was a girl's startled yell. In his mind, he tried to form the image of Odessa, to hold on to. Then he slipped away.

Flik spasmed awake as an icy jolt ran through his injured side. He was aware that he was lying on a bed. His cape, coat, and yellow shirt had all been removed and his torso wrapped in white gauze. Viktor's face loomed into view and, though he looked happy, there was a certain tightness in his smile that suggested a deep concern.

"Back in the land of the living, are you? Whew! You had me worried for a moment."

"Didn't you think to have your injury looked at?" asked the same girl who'd yelled earlier.

Flik flopped his head over to see Nanami sitting on a stool by the side of the bed. She looked tired and pale. He played through the sequence of events that had happened just before he'd blacked out. He realized that Nanami must've found him when he passed out, and that she and Viktor had taken him to get treated. He examined the tent more closely. It was not the medical ward. That meant it was probably Nanami's tent, and that he was resting on her bed. He immediately got up to a sitting position.

"Don't do that!" Nanami exclaimed. "I just spent ten minutes with my water rune patching you up. Even with the healing, it'll take time to fully recover from a wound that serious."

Carefully, Flik felt along his left side. He winced at the bruises underneath the gauze. However, he was breathing without difficulty. "What was it?" he asked.

"You're lucky I worked with injured soldiers back in Kyaro," Nanami said. "I think you had a couple of fractured ribs. My rune healed them, but the bones won't be as strong as if they'd knitted naturally."

Flik looked down at the bed covers, briefly wondering how she had managed to get the bed transported. "Thank you, Nanami."

Viktor nodded. "Yeah, it was a lot easier lugging Flik here than all the way to the field hospital."

Nanami didn't reply, looking away from the two men. After an uncomfortable moment, Flik asked, "What's wrong?"

Not making eye contact with him, she answered softly, "We lost today, didn't we?"

Flik glanced nervously at Viktor. Viktor didn't look as though he wanted to respond. Neither did Flik, but he took a deep breath and said, "It wasn't too bad. The army's still able to do battle, and that's what's important."

Nanami swung back around to face Flik. He could see tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Is it?" she asked. "Riou went and gathered all those people for what? So that we could all yell at each other and lose in battle and come back injured or dead? I don't want the war to continue. I want it to end. I want the fighting to stop. I want the killing to stop. What good does it do for us to fight if we can't accomplish anything?" The tears were now running down her cheeks; she couldn't continue speaking.

"I understand why you feel that way," Flik said. "A defeat in battle can be pretty disheartening. I should know; I've had my share. But we've got to learn from what happened and come back even stronger. That's the only way to achieve the peace we want."

Nanami shook her head. "I know what went wrong. Everybody knows, but nobody will say it. Ridley left us because Shu yelled at him. It's all Shu's fault. Now he's yelling at Freed. What happens when Freed leaves too? Maybe Shu can't figure out how to win, so all he can do is yell at people."

Those words were perilously close to Flik's own thoughts about Shu. Viktor also appeared to be pondering Nanami's statement. Cautiously, he replied, "I don't think we can ask Riou to replace him. That would really mess things up, right when we need to stick together."

Nanami looked away again, speaking more to herself. "I didn't want my brother caught up in any of this. I don't know how to get my brother to stop, either. I wish Jowy were here. He'd figure out some way to end this."

Hearing her fondness for Jowy annoyed Flik a little. Whatever Jowy's intentions were, he'd betrayed all of them and murdered Anabelle. Now he seemed quite willing to work with Luca Blight to further his own goals.

"Remember what Highland did to begin this war," Viktor said solemnly. "Personally, I'm glad that Riou is leading our army. As strange as it sounds, I think his actions are crucial for all of us. So, if he continues to have faith in Shu, then I'll continue to follow Shu's orders. Even if things go badly, I'll continue to fight. I can't let my homeland fall to a monster like Luca Blight."

Nanami met Viktor's gaze. "Even if you have to keep sending men to their deaths with no hope of victory? Even if you have to become like Luca in order to keep fighting?"

Viktor's stare was unflinching. "We haven't reached that point yet. This conflict is far from decided. We will emerge victorious, I'm sure of it."

"I wish I could see things that clearly," Nanami whispered. "It seems to me that this war has clouded everyone's vision." She looked away from Viktor, and did not speak on that subject again.


	50. Chapter 50 Bonds of Loyalty

**Chapter 50 – Bonds of Loyalty**

When Flik had his senior sergeants take a hasty count of his remaining soldiers the next morning, he found that he had a hundred fewer than before the battle. He also realized that Tengaar and Hix were among the missing. Their loss pained him greatly, but there was no time to brood over it. If they had survived and were still free, then they were probably strong enough to make their own way.

After the short night, the New State Army was on the move once again, marching back to the west and away from Radat. Even Flik could see that Shu didn't have any choice except to give ground. Given their greater numbers and the openness of the terrain, the two Highland armies would easily outflank Riou's forces if he turned to fight. The only real question was whether Shu intended to retreat all the way back to Dunan Castle or if he could find a suitable location before that to confront the enemy.

However, Flik did not have any time to ponder Shu's plans. The strategist had gathered him, Camus, and Miklotov, and given them specific instructions:

"We cannot afford to be drawn into a battle today. Therefore, I am assigning each of you to a covering position. Undoubtedly, Kiba will attempt to exploit his success yesterday by trying to overtake our army. You must prevent that at all costs. The Winghordes will be up as scouts and messengers. Use them to coordinate your efforts and keep the Highlanders back. That is all."

Now, with Camus to the north and Miklotov to the south, Flik had to figure out how to put those orders into action. As the remainder of the army disappeared into a haze of dust, one of the wingers glided out of the air and said, "The Highland Army has broken camp. They come in pursuit, their cavalry leading."

"Inform Camus and Miklotov, and keep an eye on the Highland movements," Flik ordered. The winger flapped away, joining his fellows, who circled overhead. Flik drew his sword. The motion caused his left side to hurt, but it was the dull ache of bruises, not the sharp pain of a fracture. A few minutes later, the first of the enemy cavalry was visible. It was time to carry out Shu's strategy.

This group of cavalry was quickly driven off by the Fire Spears, but that didn't halt their efforts. They learned to avoid Flik's men, and focused their efforts to the north, trying to overwhelm Camus' knights. When Flik learned of this, he detached Rossgard's company to provide support.

The Highland cavalry did not let up, skirmishing with the knights and mercenaries all through the morning. Flik, Camus, and Miklotov simply did not have enough men to stop the enemy advance. It became a matter of finding defensible positions, holding them for a while, and then falling back to the next defensible position before they were outflanked.

Around noon, a fresh group of Highland cavalry came up and started to work against Miklotov. Once again, Flik sent a company- Tarrance's- to shore up the Matilda Knights. Not long after that, a third force appeared before Flik, led by the general with the silver armor, horned helmet, and double bladed axe. With only two companies to face that enemy, Flik ordered his men to lay down a wall of fire to stop the Highland advance.

Unfortunately, one of the Fire Spears chose that moment to fail catastrophically, exploding into a pillar of flames which engulfed several of Flik's men. Nightstar staggered to her front knees due to the force of the blast, nearly throwing Flik out of the saddle. When she recovered and Flik could survey the battlefield, he saw that the Highlanders were still coming at him. He commanded his men to retreat, refusing to get drawn into another melee where he was outnumbered. A few of his men, the more able archers, took shots over their shoulders as they fled.

The enemy kept their pursuit close, and both sides' horses began to flag in the afternoon heat. Flik couldn't open up any distance to try another fire attack, and the Matilda Knights had to fall back so as not to get cut off from him. The Highland cavalry was advancing much more quickly, and Flik began to fear that his men would be driven right back into the rest of the army.

A sharp blast of wind changed the situation instantly. Luc and his mages were waiting along the road. Later Flik learned that Shu had prepared the ambush just in case things went poorly. The Highland cavalry galloped straight into the fury of the wind mage's attack. Men and horses alike were cut at by blades of wind that were as sharp as any blade of metal. The remaining Highlanders did not continue their advance, but fell back.

That was the closest the enemy came to overrunning Flik's men during that day. As Shu had stated, the army did not stop to defend South Window, but passed the city by. The gates were open; the flags of government pulled down. Flik rode by the city in the late afternoon. Already there were numerous refugees on the road, threatening to slow him down. He avoided the mobs by going cross-country.

Finally, one of the wingers arrived to tell Flik that the Highland Army had stopped pursuing to occupy South Window. The pressure was off, and he could afford to slow down and rest his horses. As the sun set beyond the western hills, Flik arrived at the army's encampment. His men quickly set to work preparing their tents for the night.

There was another briefing that night, but it was mostly perfunctory. The New State Army had broken contact with the Highland Army, and South Window had fallen. Freed, in particular, looked very depressed by the news. The rest of the unit commanders were subdued. The only people who did not appear to be affected by the events were Shu, who spoke with his usual confidence, and Riou, who's face betrayed little.

In the end, there wasn't much to say. Everyone knew that the next battle would be critical, but Shu wasn't giving any hints as to his strategy. Ultimately, he told everyone to rest well and dismissed the gathering. Flik returned to his men and tried to rest. His bruised side bothered him and his dreams were troubled; battles raged in his mind, cavalry swirling, and in the middle of the melee, a golden wolf prowled. He was certain that the wolf was stalking him, though he couldn't have said how he had that knowledge.

The following morning, the army marched out again, following the road to the northwest, away from South Window and towards Dunan Castle. Flik couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding. Somewhere soon, Shu would have to turn and offer battle, or else they'd soon retreat back into their base and risk a siege.

Once again, Flik had the rearguard, but the Highland Army didn't appear behind him. The pace Shu set was leisurely, which was a blessing, for the weather continued to be hot. If they had to fight a battle soon, at least the army would be well rested. Regardless, they were still going north. With each passing mile, Flik noted the western hills drawing closer. The pains to the east became more forested, and he grew watchful. If any Highland units had gotten ahead of them, this would be a good place to spring an ambush.

It turned out that his fears were unfounded. The forests were not hiding any enemies. The march went on into the early afternoon, when Shu abruptly called a halt for the day. Flik wondered at this. Though they were in the shadows of the nearby hills, there were still many more hours of daylight. He didn't have long to ponder, because Shu immediately called for another meeting.

When Flik arrived at Riou's pavilion- the last, as usual- Viktor said, "Okay, we're all here. Well, Mister Strategist, what have you come up with this time?"

Shu ignored the slight and gestured to Apple. "Explain the situation."

Apple walked over to the map table and pointed towards South Window. "The Winghordes have reported that the Highland Army has left South Window, heading for our castle. There do not appear to be any diversionary forces, so it will probably be a direct assault." She traced her finger up the road to Dunan Castle. "If we stand here, they will reach us tomorrow, without a doubt."

"They have two armies," Flik commented. "Why don't they try something more complex?"

"We may speculate later," Shu said, "after we've won our victory."

That caught Flik's attention. "You want us to fight here, with the forests and hills hemming us in?"

"Indeed. I intend to use the terrain to our advantage, and destroy the Highland Third Army in a single engagement."

That brought a ripple of excitement to the room. "What's the plan?" Viktor asked.

Shu stepped to the map. "Simple. Double envelopment from a set ambush. We will deploy half the army in a line straddling the road, with Riou in the center." He traced an arc with his finger, the ends of which rested in the forests to the east and hills to the west. "The other half will be hidden on either wing, ready to encircle Kiba's army on my signal."

For a few seconds, everyone was busy absorbing the plan. Then Camus spoke. "Kiba's a sound tactician. He'll know that the best way to defeat the double envelopment is to continue attacking. Is our center strong enough to hold him?"

Shu clasped his hands behind his back and smiled. "Neither Kiba nor his son will be able to defeat my plan. Follow my orders, and we will have victory."

"Like you've never miscalculated before," Viktor mumbled.

Shu affected not to hear, letting the insubordination slide. "The explanation is finished. There can be no mistakes this time."

Riou stood up and walked forward to address the generals. "I know that a lot of you are unsettled because of the outcome of our last battle. Some of you may even have grievances that you want me to hear. I am listening; I do understand your concerns. However, we must set those aside for the moment. We are pledged together to fight a common enemy, for the good of all of us. I ask you to fulfill the vows you made, to fight with all your heart. If we stand together, we will be victorious. If we allow doubt to divide us, then we will be defeated. Let us fight together, for South Window and for all of Jowston, to stop Luca Blight and bring peace to our land."

"I will fight, Lord Riou," Freed declared. He paused to wipe at his glasses.

"I'm not going anywhere," Viktor said. "I'll fight the Highland Army anywhere you want me to."

Flik smiled at Riou. "I said I'll stay to the end, and I will. I don't break my promises."

Tsai nodded somberly. "For the sake of stopping Luca Blight, I will fight. If it is in my strength, I will stop the monster."

Other voices added their assent, even Gilbert, who mumbled something along the lines of, "Can't very well let the Highlanders get the better of me. I'd be the laughingstock of Vinay del Zexay if I left now."

"Retire to your units," Shu ordered. "See that they are ready for the battle. When the time comes, I will send guides to lead each unit into position."

By the time Flik got back to his men, news of the coming confrontation had spread throughout the camp. Rather than dishearten the troops, their mood was better than any time in the past two days. He could see that the soldiers had pride in their army, and that they wanted to avenge the last defeat. All of this brought relief to Flik's mind. The army was focused on the Highlanders and was not about to disintegrate because of Ridley's actions. Victory was very much possible.

After checking his men, Flik went to his tent and rested. Sleep came quickly, and he was undisturbed until late in the night, when Rossgard woke him.

"Sir, our guide has arrived. We're assembling the unit."

Flik rolled out of his cot, stood up, and yawned. Any lethargy remaining dissipated, leaving him fully alert. "Let's go, then. Take me to the guide."

Rossgard preceded Flik out of the tent. During the evening, a north wind had picked up, cool and humid, off the lake. Only one moon traveled the sky this night, the Scarlet, waning to half-full. It was over in the west, though not yet behind the mountains. There were a few hours before dawn.

The two men walked down to the edge of the tents. The shadowy forms of Shu and the guide awaited them there. As Flik's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he saw the guide more clearly.

"Gengen, is that you?"

The kobold saluted smartly. "Captain Gengen, ready to serve. I will guide you to the right place."

"Before you go, I have some last minute instructions for you," Shu declared. "You will be the far right flank of the New State Army. Therefore, it is imperative that you be flexible in your thinking. You must be prepared to respond to any new situation that comes up. Any new situation at all. When you get the chance to strike decisively, I expect you to take it. That is all." Without bothering to explain himself, he turned and walked away into the night, leaving Flik quite puzzled.

Looking back to Gengen, Flik said, "I'm glad that you're the guide. Let's go and get my troops moving."

Most of the camp was asleep as Flik's soldiers rode out. Their direction was southwest, carrying them rapidly into the forested foothills. The pace was necessarily slow. Even with lit torches, it was difficult to see the path ahead, and no one wanted to risk breaking a horse's leg on uneven ground.

Flik marveled as Gengen managed to pick his way along the path without any difficulty. The kobold seemed to have a perfect sense of where he was leading them. After a while, Flik asked, "Gengen, why didn't you go with Ridley and the other kobolds?"

Gengen didn't turn when he answered. "They are not my pack. My place is with the mercenaries. I wouldn't ever think of abandoning my pack-mates." He barked to emphasize his point.

"Can you help me understand what Ridley was thinking?" Flik asked. "Why would he do such a thing?"

Gengen abruptly halted and began to growl. Flik could see his sharp teeth in the torchlight when Gengen looked back at him. "I do not want to understand. He has brought shame to us all because of his actions. If I met him as I feel right now, I wouldn't hesitate to rip out his throat. Not only that, but his fellow kobolds bring shame for continuing to follow his orders. They should've come back to fight with us."

"I'm sorry," Flik said softly. "I didn't think about how this would affect you."

Gengen shook his head. "My brother mercenaries understand that I'm one of them, not one of the cowards. They are ready to stand with me should anyone else question my loyalty."

"As am I. You proved your worth to me long ago."

They continued on, skirting the higher elevations and staying at the edge of the forest. Finally, Gengen read some landmark that Flik could not discern, and stopped. "We are here. The signal to break cover will be Riou using his True Rune." Gengen paused for a moment. "Good fortune in the fight. I wish I could ride with you, to show the world the true nature of kobolds."

Flik thought for a moment before he said, "Go back to the camp and ask Riou to let you be in his bodyguard. Tell him that Flik asks for it, as a favor to a friend."

"That's an excellent suggestion." Gengen yipped happily. "I'll go right away! Thank you, commander Flik!" He turned and sprinted off into the darkness.

Looking out from under the trees, Flik could see that the eastern sky was growing pale. He called his senior sergeants in for a brief meeting and explained how he wanted the unit to deploy. Three companies -Tarrance's, Jerrim's, and Danel's- would ride out abreast, with Rossgard's behind them as the reserve. The goal would be to reach the rear of the Highland formation, to cut off their retreat and possibly start a panic.

As the sun came up, Flik took a few steps out of the woods and surveyed the field. From where he stood, the trees quickly thinned out and the ground descended down a gentle slope to the road below, a half-mile's distance. On the other side of the road, the land became sparsely wooded again, clearings alternating between denser sections of foliage.

To the north, two miles away, astride the road, Flik could make out the rump of the New State Army that remained to protect Riou. He couldn't see any of the other ambush units. He swung his head around to the south. There, as if on cue, were the outriders of Kiba's Third Army. Somewhere behind them marched the remainder of the Highland forces, twenty thousand men in all. Flik looked down at his shield, which he'd only recently scraped clean from the last battle. Today would be bloody too.

Flik quickly scrambled back under the cover of the trees. From the safety of this concealment, he watched as the scouts rode to the north and briefly skirmished with Riou's infantry. After a while, the Highlanders came back down the road and, much to Flik's relief, only gave his positions a cursory look.

The bulk of the Highland army was not long in appearing, rank upon rank of cavalry, infantry, and archers, their blue and white armor sparkling in the sun. They stopped almost directly in front of Flik's position to dress their lines for battle.

"Damn, that's a lot of enemies," Flik heard one of his men mutter.

"There's a lot of us too," he replied, trying to sound reassuring. "And they're not expecting us to come from this direction. Everybody do his part and we'll win today." He gripped his sword and waited for the signal. Behind him, someone was quietly praying for the Journeyman Rune to look over him.

Watching as the Highland Army slowly began to march forward, Flik mentally counted out the days in his head. Today was Penancesdei, the fourth of Ulya. He wondered how history would record this day. Would it be decisive or just another battle in an unending war? He began to whisper the devotion to the Rune of Punishment.

A bright dome of light interrupted him. Flik looked out to the north, to the source of the dome. It was the Bright Shield Rune. It was the signal. He looked back to the Highlanders. It was much too soon to spring the ambush. They had only begun to march forward. Flik's men were tensing, waiting for him to give the command. There was no time to hesitate now. He drew his sword. "Forward, follow me!"

His men rode out from under the trees at a walking pace. Flik squinted into the sun. That half-mile seemed much longer now. To the left, he could see other ambush units marching forward. He heeled Nightstar into a trot, letting her build momentum. "Ready Fire Spears," he shouted.

The Highland army was reacting too. Showing no signs of panic, most of the infantry surged forward, closing towards Riou's position. However, on the flanks, their cavalry peeled off, wheeling to engage the new threat. Flik felt a spike of concern. The enemy's movements were much too crisp for a surprised army. It was obvious that Kiba and Klaus had anticipated the ambush. Worse yet, if the enemy infantry overran Riou before the ambush units could deal with the cavalry, then this battle might easily turn into a rout.

Flik took Nightstar up to a canter, and the rest of his men follow suit. He turned more to the east, looking for a way around the enemy cavalry. If he could get past them and use the Fire Spears on the infantry, this battle could still be saved. But the cavalry moved with him, closing the distance and cutting off his advance.

"Halt!" Flik shouted. When his line had stopped moving, he ordered, "Fire Spears, attack!" Flames arced over the fields, but the Highlanders were prepared for the fiery assault. Their cavalry scattered to avoid the blaze and quickly reformed. Flik knew was trouble. The enemy had more than enough space to avoid the flames if he kept the encounter at long range.

"Forward," Flik commanded. "Prepare to use the Fire Spears while in motion." The thought made him a bit ill. He could imagine the problems in trying to control a stream of fire while cantering. However, there was no choice. He had to get past this enemy in order to help Riou.

However, before his men could get up to speed, the Highland cavalry suddenly found themselves under attack from another direction. Flik put a hand over his eyes, trying to see clearly. The new attackers were kobolds, Ridley's kobolds, rushing into the fight from the forest on the other side of the road.

Shu's instructions rang in the back of Flik's mind. Now was the chance, while the enemy cavalry had to fight the kobolds. He turned Nightstar back to the north, bringing her to a gallop. One group of the Highland cavalry managed to break away from the kobolds, and tried to stop Flik from getting past them. They were too few; Flik's men rode right around them, refusing to be stopped.

Ahead was the main battle. The Highland infantry were crashing into Riou's ranks, while arrows, bolts of lightning, and Luc's wind spells flashed through the sky. The other ambush units were moving as quickly as they could, but only those closest to Riou had managed to engage the enemy. A dome of light appeared over Riou's men again, bright enough to make Flik look away. This time it was no signal, save that men were being wounded and dying. Flik raced down the road, running Nightstar full out. He had to get into Fire Spear range before Riou's line broke.

Even on the back of a galloping horse, the waiting was interminable. He wanted to use the Fire Spears immediately. Only his discipline kept him on course. The Highlanders had noted his approach too. A reserve unit of infantry was marching back up the road, to try and stop him. They numbered at least a thousand men to his four hundred.

Flik held the charge until the last moment, shouting for the halt yards from the enemy infantry, as their first ranks knelt down and set their spears. He stared at the glittering thicket of points for the space of a few seconds, as his men stopped all around him. Nightstar was flagging heavily, exhausted from the run. That was fine; there would be no more running today.

"Fire Spears! Attack!"

As at the battle of Waldron Village, here the enemies were completely unprepared for Flik's attack. The first ranks of infantry were buried under the conflagration, consumed by the flame. Though he could not see it, he knew the fire was raging beyond them too, burning towards the backs of the Highlanders fighting Riou. He turned Nightstar to the left, walking her along the line of fire. His men followed.

Flik came to the end of the line, to see the effect of his attack. The Highland army's attack on Riou was subsiding. Some of their men were marching back to engage him. He could feel nothing but admiration for the nerve and courage of the enemy soldiers. They were keeping their organization in the face of envelopment.

"Again!" Flik shouted. "Fire Spears!" He pointed his sword towards the nearest enemies.

The attack wasn't nearly as devastating this time. The Highlanders now understood the power of the Fire Spears, and were approaching in open formation. Even so, their attack faltered. No matter how brave they were, they couldn't walk through the fire to get at Flik.

Gilbert's Zexens were now on Flik's left flank, and the Matilda Knights had linked with him from the right. The other ambush units were forming a ring around the Third Army. However, the battle was far from finished. The Highlanders had plenty of fight remaining. They redoubled their efforts against Riou, while another unit of cavalry charged to try and break the encirclement. Flik could see that their leader was the man with the horned helmet.

They did not ride towards Flik this time, but attempted to rupture the line over to the right, crunching into Viktor's unit. Enemy infantry followed in the wake of their cavalry, ready to exploit the breakthrough when it happened. Flik used the Fire Spears again, this time to keep those infantry from joining the fight. After a sharp skirmish, Viktor's men threw the cavalry back.

Finally, the enemy's morale began to break. As Flik advanced, groups of them began to surrender, while others tired to run for it as individuals. Even so, there was a determined core of resistance around Kiba's flag. The leader of this defense was the same man who'd tried to break through Viktor's lines before, though his horned helmet had been knocked off, revealing his weathered face and short, dirty blond hair.

As tenacious as the Highland army had been on offense, now they fought with the desperation of trapped men. Flik's mounted archers, joined by Teresa's archers from Greenhill, hung back and fired arrows into the Highlanders, while the infantry of the New State Army maintained the circle and fought off a series of vicious counterattacks.

Finally, during a lull in the battle, Apple rode up under a flag of truce. Flik followed her to hear what she said to the Highlanders. "Your comrades from the Fourth Army have deserted you. There is no point in your continued resistance, except to squander your lives. Lord Riou offers you terms of surrender pursuant to the established precedents of the rules of war. This will be your only chance to save your lives."

The man with the double-bladed axe responded for the Highlanders. His voice was deep and calm. "Our lives are pledged to Lord Windamier and King Agares Blight. Our bonds of loyalty are earnest and enduring. There is no shame in dying in the service of such noble leaders."

There was a stirring from within the Highland ranks. "Enough, Dolentz." Kiba himself emerged to speak. Flik could see that his bald head was bandaged and that his drawn sword was bloody. "If I am as noble as you declare, then I must accept the consequences of my defeat. Lay down your arms; your deaths would do Highland no good this day."

Reluctantly, his men began to stack their weapons. Soldiers from Riou's army quickly came forward to begin accepting surrenders. Apple gestured to Flik. "Have your men take Kiba and Klaus into custody. They are to be unharmed."

Flik wiped at the sweat that glistened all over his face. "As you wish." He rode alongside his men to escort the two generals. Klaus was standing next to his father, doing his best to support the older man, who was winded from the combat.

"I am sorry, father," Klaus whispered. His face was flushed, but it didn't look like he'd done any fighting. "My strategy has brought about our ruin."

"Nonsense," Kiba replied, his voice as steady as ever. "Victory and defeat are the constant companions of any soldier. I do not blame you." He looked up at Flik's approach, eyes hard. "So, what prison do you intend to drag us off to, or will you have us killed here and now?"

"I can't speak for Riou," Flik answered. "I don't think he'll have you killed, but your war is over. You and your army lost."

"A stroke of fortune, and nothing more," Kiba declared.

As Flik led them back towards Apple, he saw that Ridley had walked up and was speaking to her. Surprisingly, Hix and Tengaar were also with him. Ridley bowed when Flik arrived with the prisoners.

"My apologies, Lord Flik, but circumstances did not permit me to allow your comrades to return to you."

"Don't be mad," Tengaar insisted. "Lord Ridley was only acting under Lord Shu's orders."

Flik tried to reason that statement out. "What do you mean?"

A sharp, rueful laugh drew his attention. It had come from Kiba. "So, the retreat was just a deception, and I fell for it. How galling, to be defeated by a ploy! Your strategist is a man of uncommon perception and cunning."

Flik pondered the situation for a moment. What sort of man would purposefully lose one battle in order to ensure a victory in the second? Only a man with supreme confidence in his abilities. Despite the heat, Flik shivered. Now he understood why Shu was the strategist.


	51. Chapter 51 An Ominous Portent

**Chapter 51 – An Ominous Portent**

The army didn't move for the remainder of that day, except to see to the wounded and gather up the prisoners. There was no strength left in the soldiers to do anything else. That night, the crippling heat suddenly broke in a line of thunderstorms and hail, which ripped tents from their moorings and added to the misery of the wounded and prisoners. When the storm passed, Flik and his men worked to get their part of the encampment back in order. There was little sleep that night.

The following morning Flik went to visit some of his men who'd been moved to Huan's field hospital. The tents that comprised the medical section were overflowing with casualties, many of them Highlanders. Flik found that he wasn't the only person making a morning visit to the wounded. Riou and Nanami were there as well, and a very flustered Doctor Huan was speaking to them.

"You needn't do this, Lord Riou. I have more help than I can organize among those who bear Water Runes and the mages from Luc's unit. Furthermore, you are exhausted from your efforts yesterday. I can't allow you to continue using the Rune to try and heal people."

Riou was slumped heavily against Nanami. "I must do something for them," he said. "Do you understand how I feel? Yesterday, I watched men that I had rescued from terrible wounds get up, rejoin the fight, and die, right in front of my eyes. No one should have to die twice for me."

The men around Riou began to murmur, to reach out and try to touch him. These men were mostly amputees who had lost legs or arms. Those whose injuries were less serious had already been healed and returned to duty. These men, even when done with their convalescence, would be crippled for life. No rune, whether a normal Water Rune or the Bright Shield itself, could restore a lost limb.

There were others in this ward too, Highland soldiers whose bodies were wrapped in bandages covering terrible burns. Flik knew what had caused those burns, who had commanded the consuming flame. Riou glanced at Flik. Was there reproach in those eyes or simply resignation?

"I do understand," Huan answered. Riou's crushing gaze turned away before Flik could decide the answer to his question. "Yet you must save your strength for where it is needed. There are many nurses in this ward who can tend to the wounded, but only one man who can lead the army."

Riou looked down to the floor, shaking his head slightly. If he had been preparing a response, it was interrupted by a messenger pulling aside one of the flaps of the pavilion. "Lord Riou, I'm glad I've found you. Lord Shu requests that you sit in on a council of victory. He's gathering all the senior generals." The messenger noted Flik's presence. "Ah, yes, Lord Flik, he orders you to bring out Kiba and Klaus, that they might hear judgement."

Flik ducked out of the tent and walked back to his own men. With a few orders, the two captives were led out. Kiba's head wound had been healed and the bandages removed. He walked proudly. Klaus was subdued, still a little pale from the result of the battle. Neither man was restrained in any way, but both were escorted by soldiers. Flik led the procession towards Riou's pavilion.

The generals were seated in a rough semi-circle with Riou in the center. Shu was seated at his left hand, and Ridley had the place of honor at his right. The conversation in the tent was stilled as Flik and the escort brought Kiba and Klaus inside.

"Enemy generals," Flik announced. "Here to witness judgement."

Viktor got up and stepped over to Kiba, presenting his hand. "You're pretty good. You had me concerned right up to the end."

Kiba's face remained like flint. "You've earned no right to be familiar with me, boy. Kill me and be quick about it."

"Stuck up bastard," Viktor growled. "Doesn't know when he's lost."

"Enough, Viktor," Shu admonished, getting to his feet. "Lord Riou, if I may offer my opinion on the matter, I would tell you that General Kiba is a great leader of men and his son is a military genius. I suggest you free them and offer them positions within our army."

Flik heard several sharp breaths of surprise from the generals, though no outright protests. He had trouble covering his own reaction. Kiba frowned, while Klaus looked thoughtful. Riou regarded the two prisoners and said, "I agree with Shu. General Kiba, I would be honored if you would lend your strength to the cause of defeating Luca Blight."

"I refuse," Kiba stated. "My allegiance has been and always will be with the King of Highland, Agares Blight. My honor means more to me than life."

"I stand with my father," Klaus added. "I couldn't think of devising strategy for the enemies of my homeland."

Riou stood, walking until he was before the two prisoners. "I will not compel you to serve me, not by threats, and not by bribes. I promise that you and your men will be treated well." He paused, looking up at Kiba's face. "Tell me -you have seen Luca Blight's exploits- do you believe that his actions are correct, that his war is justified?"

For a moment, Kiba's confidence slipped. "I don't need to answer the accusations of a traitor."

"I did not betray my country," Riou declared coldly. "Perhaps you should ask Prince Luca whether the blood of the Unicorn Brigade doesn't stain his sword."

Before Kiba could reply, there was a commotion at the front of the tent. Shu's expression was icy as a shamefaced messenger rushed in. With a wave of his hand, the strategist motioned for the news.

"Yes, lord strategist. An envoy from the Highland Army has arrived under a flag of truce. He wishes to speak with Lord Riou."

Shu considered for a moment before saying, "Bring him here." He glanced over at Flik. "Let Kiba and Klaus listen as well."

The messenger arrived, a functionary whose blond hair was well oiled and whose nails were manicured. He sniffed distastefully at the air and gave his speech in a perfectly modulated tone of neutrality. "His august and terrible majesty, Lord of Highland, Kyaro, and protector of the City-States of Jowston, by the grace and authority of the Twenty-Seven True Runes, King Luca Blight offers one Riou a message of congratulation. Jowy Blight, formerly Atreides, has married Princess Jillia Blight and has become brother-in-law to the King. As such, his Highness offers the lives of Kiba and Klaus Windamier as a wedding gift to the friend of Jowy Blight." Riou accepted the startling news with a blink. Flik found it hard to believe that Jowy had risen so far so rapidly. Regardless, all of Jowy's achievements had been built on betrayal.

The functionary stopped and acknowledged the two prisoners with a smirk. Kiba growled, but the messenger continued on. "His majesty looks forward to your next meeting, where he shall crush your collection of bandits and bring true peace to the City-States. That is his message to Riou."

Shu nodded. "We have heard all that is important. You may return to your lines."

Turning to glance at Shu, the messenger spoke once more. "I have a personal message for you, Shu."

Shu's eyes narrowed. "Who is it from?"

"It was delivered to me by Lord Leon Silverberg, chief strategist of the Highland Fourth Army."

The room grew silent. Flik knew the name from the Liberation War and even before then. Leon was the uncle of Odessa, and a great strategist in his own right. During the war two years ago, he had agreed to aid Mathiu and Tir McDohl. However, his past was very dark. He had engineered the Kalekka Incident, a slaughter designed to enflame the citizens of the Scarlet Moon Empire for war with Jowston.

"I will hear it," Shu responded tersely.

The functionary cleared his throat. "Greetings, student of Mathiu Silverberg. I must admit, when last I saw you, you were little more than a child, clutching at the legs of your teacher. That you have come into your maturity is a reminder of time's passing. Take heed of my lesson: time's great circle closes around every man. He who rides the apex in the morning may be crushed beneath the wheel ere the sun sets. It is the way of the universe, ever desiring equilibrium. Every action requires a commensurate reaction. The only question is, which one of us understands this better?" Finished, he waited for Shu to respond.

"You may leave. We have no further use for you." Shu motioned the guards to escort the messenger from the tent. When the man was gone, Shu looked at Klaus. "Tell me, how would you analyze King Luca Blight's message?"

Klaus gagged. "King Agares has been…murdered…by his own son."

"Klaus, don't fall for their ploy," Kiba snapped.

"Father, it rings true," Klaus argued. "Luca practically flaunts his regicide by taking the crown without a period of mourning. Besides, there's also the marriage of Princess Jillia and the actions of the Fourth Army. It's the logical conclusion."

When Kiba didn't answer, Shu asked, "What now? What does King Luca Blight represent for your vision of Highland? Do you believe, even for a moment, that he can lead the people of Highland to anything other than complete ruin? Join us, if not for our sake, then for the sake of saving your people from Luca's madness."

"Father, I'm inclined to work with them," Klaus said.

Kiba's face broke into a small smile. "I understand. Lord Riou, though it is a warrior's shame to change masters, I'll accept any shame if it means I can save my people from Luca Blight. Permit me to fight alongside you."

"My humble skills were not enough to defeat you," Klaus added. "However, if you can find some place for me within your army, I will do my best to aid you."

Shu turned to Flik. "Your men may stand down. Kiba and Klaus are no longer prisoners, but generals in our army."

Laughing heartily, Kiba added, "It seems that you were a little presumptuous, Flik. I have many more battles ahead of me in this war."

"We'll have to see how many of your men want to follow you," Shu commented.

"I believe, once I explain the situation, that most of them will continue to work with me," Kiba replied. "They'll prefer action to sitting around in prisoner of war camps any day."

"Hey, this calls for a celebration," Viktor announced. "Bring on the beer."

"Viktor, we didn't bring any," Apple chided. "You'll have to wait until we return to Dunan Castle."

The noise in the room grew as several of the generals came forward to congratulate Kiba. However, Flik noticed Shu hanging back, pondering something. When Apple came over, he distinctly heard Shu mutter, "Leon Silverberg. I suppose it is my fault that he has joined the Highland side."

Apple shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Shu. No one ever understood Leon's thinking anyway."

"But I do," Shu responded. "And I think it's an ominous portent." He looked up and met Flik's gaze, then quickly left the tent.

Even without any beer, they celebrated on into the night. Flik wasn't present to hear Kiba's speech to his men, but judging by the number of Highland soldiers who got their weapons back, it must've gone well. Even so, there were more than a few uneasy glances among the Jowston soldiers. It was going to take some time for them to accept their former enemies as comrades.

The following morning, the army decamped and set off for home. Arnhem and his garrison were sent to reclaim South Window, which had been abandoned by the retreating enemy. Scouting by the Winghordes revealed that Radat was likewise free from occupation. The Highland army had fallen all the way back into East Muse.

Cheering crowds lined the road leading into Dunan Castle. Unlike the soldiers, they didn't immediately recognize the Highland men for what they were. Thus, the former prisoners ended up getting a warm reception from the civilians. Riou, of course, garnered the biggest cheers, as he and Nanami rode in on the back of the unicorn.

There was also plenty of alcohol. Soon enough, Flik and Viktor were back in Leona's tavern, drinking to the triumph.

"What a victory!" Viktor shouted, banging his mug down on the table. "It was great. We crushed them!"

The image of Shu thinking about Leon flashed through Flik's mind. "It was a good victory, but we've still got a way to go."

"Man, don't ruin the mood," Viktor chided. "Are you drinking enough? You sound as sober as our strategist."

Flik shrugged his shoulders. "Weren't you the one who told me to watch how much I drank?"

"Yeah, but that was when you're alone. Don't worry, I'll stop you long before you do anything too stupid." He signaled Leona for his sixth mug.

One Flik's men came over and said, "Captain, there's a cute girl at the door who wants to chat with you."

"Ah, well, we know who that'll be," Viktor took a swig from his mug. "I would wager she'll be a blond schoolgirl type."

Flik abruptly got up. "Tell her I'm in the bathroom." The soldier nodded and walked away.

Viktor smirked. "You're not going to the bathroom. You're not drunk enough to throw up…or piss, I suppose."

"I'll duck out by the back exit."

"What, and leave her to pine away?" Viktor shrugged. "You do that too much and you'll get a reputation."

"And if I welcome her advances, I'll get another reputation. You think I want either?"

Viktor suddenly looked thoughtful. "Well, the best way to avoid either reputation is to get a lady friend. That'll throw Nina off the trail, right? You know what, I bet I could get Leona to set you up with someone."

"Don't you dare," Flik snapped, feeling a surge of panic. He could see Nina walking into the bar, looking for him. "I've got to go," he said to Viktor. "See you later."

"You're only making this more difficult for yourself," Viktor called to him.

Flik stepped out through the back door and into the darkened hallways. He could hear revelry from other parts of the castle, but decided against searching for another party to join. Instead, he made his way to his room and collapsed into bed.

His dream placed him back in the realm of memory. As was often the case, he was running, albeit unsteadily, down a path in a forest, sunlight streaming through the trees.

"Flik, come back here," a man's voice ordered.

He glanced back in the direction of the speaker. A powerfully built man with red hair and a full beard stood back up the path, by an intersection. At his side was a slender young woman who had brown hair like Flik's and blue eyes. They were Flik's father and mother.

Four year old Flik laughed and turned away, his little legs carrying him along the path, towards the sound of a nearby stream.

"I command you to return," Flik's father shouted.

Flik did not heed him. He was unable to articulate the reasons, except that he liked the feel of the wind on his face and his feet on the ground. He wanted to take a new path, not the same ones he'd walked every day before. He wanted to see what was around the corner.

Around the corner was the babbling creek, its banks high and steep in Flik's eyes. He stared at his rippling reflection in the current, leaning out over the edge to get a closer view. The bushes on the far bank suddenly rustled, arresting Flik's movement. He looked up to see a golden wolf, larger than any normal one, stalk into view across the water.

The sight, rather than causing apprehension, filled Flik with curiosity and anticipation. He wanted to cross the stream and find out what this was. Before he could take the first step, though, a hand seized him from behind and roughly pulled him back. Tumbling head over heels, he had to collect himself before he saw his father, his two-handed sword drawn, occupying the spot where Flik had been. The wolf growled once and disappeared back into the underbrush.

Flik's mother came rushing down the path, sweeping him up off the ground and hugging him against her skirts. "Why did you run off like that? Whatever got into your head?"

"Enough of that," his father said, frowning. "You come here boy." Flik looked back to see that his father had sheathed the sword and was standing with crossed arms.

Flik's mother held his hand, holding him back. "Dear, you don't need to be harsh with him."

"He disobeyed me. He needs to learn to heed commands, especially once he begins his training. There's nothing harsh about teaching him to follow rules."

Flik heard his mother sigh. "Let him be a child yet. He has plenty of time to grow into a man."

"A boy only becomes a man when he has learned discipline. A man can only give orders if he first learns how to take them." He uncrossed his arms and looked down at Flik, softening his expression a little. "Now then, Flik, I want to speak with you. Please come over here."

His hand was suddenly free. Though he didn't understand what his parents were talking about, Flik walked over to stand in front of his father, who squatted down to look him in the eyes.

"Listen, my boy. I'm not angry with you, just upset." He put one hand on Flik's shoulder. "When I ask you to do something, I want you to do it, okay?"

"Why?" Flik asked.

"Because I said so."

"Why?"

Flik's obstinacy seemed to perturb his father. "You have to learn to follow the rules. When I tell you to do something, it's because I love you and want to protect you. Even when you don't know why, you should still be obedient, because that's when the danger is greatest."

Flik still didn't know why, but he did know that his father expected an answer. Embracing his father, he said, "Okay, papa."

This had the desired effect, for even his father couldn't help but smile and hug him back, lifting him off the ground. "Very good. Now, let's all get along home before the sun goes down."

Flik, looking back over his father's shoulder, saw the glimmering golden wolf regarding him from across the stream. Then the dream broke, and he was back in the present, sitting up in the darkness of his room in Dunan Castle. There were tears in his eyes, and he reflexively reached up to wipe them away.

He had so few memories of his parents. The following year the crops didn't fare well due to an exceptionally cool summer, causing an upsurge in disease. The plagues that followed claimed both his parents. Worse yet, Flik didn't even know the exact date because he, along with the other five-year-olds, had begun their training and were in barracks. He'd only learned about their deaths later, when an instructor remarked on them while Flik was in earshot.

However, what disturbed him about the dream were not his parents, but the golden wolf. Flik knew that the animal that had faced him across the stream had been a mountain lion. That wolf had intruded in other dreams, but never in one of his memories. Was it a sign of battle stress, or was there a deeper warning involved? He shook his head. Trying to find meaning in dreams was a risky business and not something that he dabbled in. He lay back, letting his head rest on his pillow, and sought sleep once again. Nothing else that night troubled him.

The next morning, Shu sent a message saying that he needed to speak with him. Flik made his way to the strategist's room. Shu and Kiba were sitting at the table covered with papers, deep in discussion. Shu looked up when Flik had to step around the hanging plant in the doorway.

"Ah, good morning, Flik. Join us, if you would. We're going over the best way to fit Lord Kiba's men into the army."

Kiba nodded respectfully. "Yes. The lord strategist has informed me that your unit suffered most grievously in the last series of battles. I believe that some of my men may be willing to join your mounted archers."

Flik glanced at the papers on the table. It appeared that many of Kiba's men would be joining other units to make up for losses and as reinforcements. Shu quirked an eyebrow. "You have no objections with having Highland soldiers in your force?"

"Of course not," Flik answered. "I've worked with people from many lands. As long as they're willing to follow orders, then I'm willing to lead them."

Kiba smiled. "They are. Well, lord strategist, I think that settles everything. I'm off to inform my men." He stood up, bowed, and left the room. Flik remained behind, continuing to study the troop deployments.

Shu cleared his throat. "Something on your mind?"

"You're plotting something." Flik rubbed his chin, pondering. "You've sent detachments of Highland soldiers to every unit in the army, save the kobolds. Even units who had only light casualties are receiving Highland soldiers. I wonder why?"

Leaning back in his chair, Shu smiled inscrutably. "Your insight astounds me." He laughed. "Or maybe it's your rebellious nature that makes you question everything around you."

"You're not going to tell me," Flik replied.

"Of course not." Shu started to gather up the papers. "I leave it to you to figure out the meaning behind my moves. I assure you, there is one. Now then, don't forget that I've scheduled a meeting in the great hall for this afternoon. I expect you to be there."

"What, not even a day to rest?"

"Time is precious," Shu declared. "Luca Blight will return to the battlefield as soon as he has stabilized matters in his capital. We will have to face him personally."

With that cheery thought on his mind, Flik left to find some breakfast. The castle was quiet during the morning, many of its residents either too tired or too hung over to care about trivial things like eating or training. Flik decided that if the Highland army had deigned to show up, they'd probably be able to take the castle simply by walking in.

This lethargy continued into the afternoon, when Flik arrived at the great hall for the meeting. To his surprise, he found that he was among the first show up, with only Shu and Apple there before him. Shu called for messengers to search for the others. One by one, Ridley, Teresa, Kiba, Fitcher, Freed, and finally Viktor walked into the great hall.

"Has anyone seen Lord Riou?" Shu asked, betraying a touch of impatience. Flik shrugged his shoulders and looked to the faces around him. Judging from their expressions, no one knew where Riou was. Shu sighed and walked over to the bell he used to call the messengers. With one ring, Oulan strode into the room. Flik found it difficult not to stare as she made her entrance.

"Find Lord Riou," Shu ordered.

Oulan smiled. "I've just seen him. He's on his way here, but needs to clean up first."

For what was possibly the first time, Shu looked puzzled. Flik didn't blame him, for he too wondered what Riou had been doing. Minutes later, the object of all that speculation casually walked into the room, with his sister following.

"I'm sorry I'm late," Riou said. "I lost track of time."

"You do understand my concern at your absence?" Shu asked. "I was about to send Oulan out to look for you."

"I wasn't in any danger," Riou replied. "Yam Koo and Tai Ho were showing me how to fish, that's all." Flik remembered his own adventure with those two. That had been unexpectedly exciting. He cringed a bit at the memory of diving off the boat before it crashed into the cliffs.

Viktor walked over to Riou and faced Shu. "Come on, strategist, you can't get upset if Lord Riou needs a little time to himself now and then. You have to know when to give a young man his space."

Shu's expression didn't change. "Lord Riou, though you are young, you have taken on great responsibilities as the leader of the New State Army. All of our destinies are bound up in yours, so you must be diligent about your safety. Without your leadership, this army would collapse, and the lives of many men would be forfeit." He closed his eyes. "Now, let us put that subject behind us. Apple, you may begin today's briefing."

"In light of our recent victory, Lord Shu has asked me to remind you of our strategic position before we decide on our next course of action. First, with the addition of Lord Kiba's troops, the strength of the New State Army has risen to nearly twenty-five thousand soldiers. By comparison, this is about as many men as one Highland Army. At the outset of the war, Highland had four such armies. Even with the results of the last battle, they still have three remaining armies to deploy against us. In short, we are vastly outnumbered."

"Where do they find all those soldiers?" Viktor muttered.

"You forget that what Highland lacks in size and population, she makes up for in having a centralized military command," Kiba answered. "Two years of military service are compulsory for every man in the kingdom. It gives us a huge pool of trained reserves to draw upon. Besides, the war remains popular with the people, though the recent reverse might change that."

"We've got to increase the size of our own forces," Flik reasoned. "But where are we going to find more allies?"

Fitcher shook his head. "Tinto's army has taken up defensive positions on its border, but other than that has done nothing. They refuse to meet with any of our messengers. I don't think we can expect any help from that direction."

Flik looked around the room. People were frowning at that news. "Greenhill is held against us, Matilda has decided against us, and Tinto won't join us," Viktor said. "Damn, where can we find more allies?"

"This is not good," Ridley growled. "Luca Blight is sure to attack us with everything he has. What can we do?"

If Shu had some sort of plan, he never got to explain it, for as he opened his mouth to speak, there was a commotion from the entrance.

"Ah, hell, I like it rough, but I don't have time to play with you," a petulant man's voice pleaded. "I've got to get in there- ouch! Hey, hands off!"

"I recognize that voice," Apple exclaimed. Flik looked in the direction of the struggle. He recognized the voice too.

Oulan had knocked a young man with short blond hair, a light green jacket, and dark green pants to the floor. Using one knee to pin him there, she grabbed both his arms and pulled them behind him. Helplessly, he lifted his head and scanned the room.

"Apple, is that you? Help an old friend out here, would you?"

Viktor slapped his forehead. "Oh great. He's the last person we need crashing the party."


	52. Chapter 52 The Gentle Path

**Chapter 52 – The Gentle Path**

Despite being rebuffed by Viktor, and the fact that he was still pinned to the floor, the unexpected blond newcomer maintained an unflappable front. Putting on his best smile, he said, "Apple, you remember me, right? It's me, Sheena. Did I tell you how much more womanly you've become since the last time I saw you?"

The room was silent except for the sharp hiss of anger that escaped Apple's lips and the measured beats of Ridley's black boots as the kobold walked over to Sheena. Oulan, while holding both of Sheena's arms behind him with one hand, grabbed the back of his coat with the other and hauled him to his feet. Ridley stared at him, then growled, "Who are you, pup? Don't you know there are severe penalties for trespassing where you're not allowed?"

If Sheena was intimidated by the display, nothing showed on his face. "No need to get your hackles up. Apple and I go way back, all the way back to the Liberation War. You might even say we were inseparable." He winked suggestively.

"How dare you presume!" Apple exclaimed. "If my memory serves, you said you weren't interested in hanging around with a 'stick-figure'." Abruptly she put her hand to her mouth and blushed.

"Always liked playing hard to get." Sheena chuckled, adding, "You're not as much of a 'stick-figure' now."

"Enough!" Ridley interrupted. "This is an important strategy briefing. Whatever your relationship to Lady Apple, rapscallion, your reminiscing can wait until we're finished. Oulan, escort this undesirable from the room immediately." Oulan quickly started dragging Sheena towards the door, overpowering his resistance with brute strength.

Riou glanced at Apple. "You really want him gone?"

Apple was shaking with hostility. "Get him out of here."

That was enough to puncture Sheena's brave front. "Wait, wait! I've got useful information that can help you." His eyes scanned the room. "Viktor, Flik, you can vouch for me, right? Tell them who I am."

Viktor looked at Flik. Flik looked back. Sheena was nearly at the exit. "Never seen him before in my life," Viktor lied, also contradicting his statement from a few minutes past.

"Now that's just wrong," Sheena complained. "How can you two do this to me?" He began to bristle with indignation. "My dad will hear of this. I'll convince him to put a bounty on your heads, or something." His tone turned pleading as Oulan opened the door. "Come on! My dad's the president, and he's famous, and rich. We can work something out here."

Ridley smiled at Sheena, a smile that bared his fangs. "This is serious business. We hardly need the help of a punk's 'old man'."

Shu, who'd betrayed no emotion throughout the disturbance, turned to Apple and calmly said, "You and I both know who he is. Shall I tell Oulan to desist, or will you?"

Oulan, who'd been in the midst of arranging Sheena to toss him out the door, arrested the motion, glancing at Shu for further instructions. Ridley's smile drooped into a frown. "You…can't be serious."

"Finally, someone who recognizes my greatness," Sheena exclaimed. With his hands, which were now free, he began swatting at Oulan's arms. She was holding him horizontally, in midair, preparatory to ejecting him from the room. "Let me down."

Apple sighed and shifted around so that her back was to the scene. "Let him down."

Oulan obeyed by releasing her grip on Sheena. He fell directly onto the floor but sprang back up instantly, a smile on his face. "That's more like it. Now we can get to work."

"So who is he?" Riou asked. He sounded more interested than annoyed.

"My dad's President of the Toran Republic!" Sheena declared, dusting off his green jacket as he walked to the center of the room.

"Why are we putting up with this?" Ridley muttered.

"No, that part is true," Apple affirmed, refusing to look at Sheena. "His father really is President Lepant."

"There you go," Sheena replied. He nudged Viktor affably in the ribs. "Come on, you two, what's with the silent treatment? I get it, you're mad cause I got all the action back in Toran Castle."

Viktor's face nearly exploded before laughter erupted out. Flik quipped, "Didn't your father mention something about castration after he caught you with that maid in Seika? As I recall, you spent the rest of the war going pale at the sight of anything in a dress."

"Ah, all the good looking ones were too old anyway." Sheena sidled up towards Nanami. "You, on the other hand, are absolutely cute." He had to jump away to avoid Nanami's punch. Riou frowned protectively in the direction of his sister.

Shu cleared his throat. "How about we get to the reason you're here, Sheena. Not that I haven't fathomed it already."

Sheena looked grateful for the change of subject. "Yes, of course. I wish to offer an alliance between the Toran Republic and Jowston."

"Not that you have any official diplomatic standing," Shu observed.

"I'm the son of the president!" Sheena retorted. "My dad will listen to me…if he's not in a bad mood…if no one tells him about the girls I've been with."

Shu thought about it for a moment. "There is merit in this proposal. I think President Lepant would want Luca Blight stopped almost as much as we do."

"It's a terrible idea," Freed blurted, his face going crimson. "Just because the Scarlet Moon Empire has changed its name doesn't mean they've changed their aggressive policies. Think about how many wars we've had over the years. Only two years ago, we were at war with this so-called republic."

"Because you had occupied our territory," Sheena countered.

"Because you sent emissaries seeking our help during your uprising!" Freed shouted.

"Freed, stand down," Shu ordered. "It is a different country now, in the same manner that our New State Army is independent of the old alliance's control. Since the end of the fighting, Toran's foreign policy has not been hostile to Jowston. There is no reason not to form an alliance. Lord Riou, the decision is yours."

Riou regarded Freed, who was breathing heavily from his outburst. Freed frowned, looking first at Sheena and then at Riou. "My lord, I will accept any policy you choose, but Scarlet Moon is the enemy of South Window. They have always been our enemy."

"Your enmity is more important than defending your homeland?" Riou asked, with surprising coolness. "Is hatred the only way you can define yourself?" He shook his head fiercely. "If we cannot learn to forgive, then nothing will ever change, we will never have peace, and all our efforts will be in vain. I, for one, accept the alliance proposal."

There was silence following Riou's speech. It seemed to Flik that no one knew how to respond. Finally, Sheena, ever practical, replied, "That's great and all, but how do we get to Toran? I came up by boat into Highland. We're obviously not going back that way. As for going across the badlands, that's just suicide."

"Done it…three times," Viktor observed.

"And you nearly killed me that last time," Flik countered. "Besides, it's the middle of summer. Even you aren't crazy enough to try the desert right now." Viktor coughed, conceding the point.

"There are other ways," Shu said. "Freed, would you care to elaborate?"

Freed was obviously struggling with Riou's words, his eyes shut tight behind his glasses. "I-"

Tapping his foot, Shu snapped, "Make your decision! It's time to set your past grievances aside."

"I understand." Freed stood upright, facing Riou, eyes open and untroubled. "There is a way, if we take the Dunan River south of Radat down to the village of Banner. From there we'd have to go overland because of the rapids. I can guide you that far. After that, I guess it all depends on what sort of reception we get at the border."

"That's where I come in," Sheena interjected. "I'll make sure things go smoothly at the border. We'll be partying in Gregminster in no time at all." He smiled as if already imagining the celebrations.

Shu deliberated momentarily. "It seems Riou must go. He's the only person who'll be able to meet with a president on equal terms. Viktor, Flik, you'll go along too. Your familiarity with the leaders of Toran should aid us."

"You want us to go back there?" Flik asked dubiously. "Neither of us is really current with their politics."

"We kind of burned our bridges," Viktor added. "After all, we're supposed to be dead."

"I'm sure that the sight of you two living and breathing will dispel those rumors," Shu said. "Now, who else will join you?"

"You're not leaving me behind," Nanami answered. "I go where my brother goes. Somebody's got to look after him."

"The thought of leaving you behind had never crossed my mind," Shu replied. "Is there anyone else who we need?"

"I will go," Oulan said. "It's my job to be Lord Riou's bodyguard, wherever he goes." Flik had no doubt she could perform that duty admirably, since she was certainly taller and possibly heavier than he was. "I'll also make sure _he_ doesn't cause any trouble." She jerked her thumb in the direction of Sheena.

"I just want to get home," Sheena pleaded. "I've had enough of wandering around a war zone."

Shu nodded. "Good. I'd say Riou's escort is large enough. It will depart tomorrow morning."

With the course of action decided, the meeting broke up. Flik didn't stick around to reminisce with Sheena -who was busy trying to make a good second impression with Nanami- but went back to his room to prepare for the journey. He tired to set his thoughts in order. It wasn't like he would be returning to the Warrior's Village, his hometown, so he didn't have to worry about any confrontation. His feelings for the Republic itself were much more ambivalent. Before he'd met Odessa, he'd been something of a wanderer, rarely returning to the land of his birth. During her struggle, he'd looked forward to the country she was planning to create. Now that country existed, but she was gone. He knew that any return to Gregminster would be bittersweet.

Before going to sleep that night, he wondered if he would dream of her. If he did, he could not recall the dreams when he woke in the morning. After a quick breakfast, the entire delegation assembled at the departure point. It was a very confusing scene.

"Well look at who we have here," Sheena said, smiling brightly as he laid eyes on the person in charge of seeing them off. "It's just like old times back in Toran. Maybe you could give me a little kiss goodbye."

"Huh?" Viki replied, looking confused. Of course, she always looked confused. After her sudden arrival during the Festival of Candles, she'd quickly become an integral part of the New State Army, teleporting people to the surrounding villages. Sometimes she even managed to get them where they wanted to go. She'd set up her teleportation mirror in one corner of the entrance hall. Flik had even heard rumors that she slept there. She regarded Sheena vacantly. "Have we met somewhere?"

Sheena's face went from beaming to crestfallen in moments. Shu interposed himself between Sheena and Viki, catching the latter's attention. "I need you to teleport them to Radat, if you would."

"Excuse me." Freed coughed nervously. "I was hoping we might begin by going to South Window first."

Shu quirked an eyebrow as he glanced sidelong at him. "Speed is of the essence. The journey to and from Gregminster will take the better part of a month, barring no difficulties. We will be fortunate if Luca Blight gives us even that much time."

Freed was not to be swayed by such logical considerations. He appealed to a higher power, namely Riou. "Please, Lord Riou, it's very important to me that I see South Window one last time before we set out. It'll only add a day to our journey."

"If Freed is this adamant, then it must be important," Riou answered. "We can afford one day." Flik saw the gratefulness reflecting in Freed's eyes and decided that Riou was right.

Shu didn't look happy about being overridden. "Are you sure? As necessary as you are for this mission, I dislike making your absence even one day longer than it needs to be."

"Luca Blight won't attack during while I'm gone," Riou replied. "I feel pretty sure of that." He put his left hand over his right, the one that had the Bright Shield Rune.

Shu relented. "I will trust your judgement on this matter, Lord Riou."

If it were possible, Viki looked even more dazed than before. "Where do you want to go?"

"South Window," Riou replied. Flik noted Shu backing out of teleportation range.

"Here we go!" Viki shouted, waving her staff in a circle above her head.

"Hope we get there," Viktor muttered, before the world around Flik exploded into white light. Flik had been teleported before, but he was certain he'd never get used to the sensation. For a moment, he was vaguely aware of being in some "other" place, but the vision was fleeting. He never got more than the impression of checkered blue and white squares.

Then they arrived, wherever it was that Viki sent them. Flik found that he was lying on his back, looking up at the rafters of a ceiling. A bloody cleaver flashed in front of his face and he reacted by bring his arm up and catching the hand that held it before it descended to do any damage.

"Where the hell did she transport us?" Viktor bellowed, though Flik couldn't see him. Nanami squeaked in dismay and some large object thumped to the ground.

"What the hell are you doing in my shop," a voice above Flik asked. A portly man with a thick head of gray hair and a bloody apron loomed over Flik. Flik, not wanting to face such a man in close quarters, rolled away and over an edge, landing face first on the floor.

Things sorted themselves out following that. By the time Flik got to his feet, he could see that they were in a butchery, with slabs of dressed meat hanging from the ceiling. Nanami had knocked one of them over while scrambling up. A water rune embedded in one of the ceiling beams kept the room much chillier than the summer heat outside. Freed walked forward to speak with the butcher. "Greetings good man, I am Lord Yamamoto, in the employ of the New State Army. Have we arrived in South Window?"

"You've wrecked my business," the shopkeeper shouted. He stopped and gaped as Oulan hefted the large piece of meat back onto its hook. She noted his ogling and smirked.

Freed stuck his head out the open door. "Yes, this is South Window. I know where we are."

"Let's go," Sheena groused. "Any longer in here and you can hang me up on one of those hooks." Under his breath, he added, "Doesn't even have the decency to have a cute daughter. Oh well."

They bustled out of the butcher's shop and onto one of the streets of South Window. Flik squinted in the sun, glad for the heat. He knew he wouldn't be glad long, it was shaping up to be another hot day. Freed led them east, towards the mayoral palace.

As they walked through the city streets, Flik tried to gauge the mood of the people. Highland soldiers had occupied the city twice during the past two months, though never for more than a few days either time. The city was lively, if not bustling. If there were fewer merchants than normal hawking their wares, Flik couldn't tell. He wondered if he ought to ask Freed about that.

The street they were on led to the square in front of the palace. Nothing much had changed here. The memorial stone with the founders' names was still in the center of the square. Children ran about, playing games of tag.

"You!" Viktor exclaimed. The giant monk with the huge beads and the growth on his forehead was also there. Flik tried to recall the name…Gontetsu? Gentetsu? He decided it must be Gantetsu.

The monk laughed gigantically, the sound filling up the square. "You have returned for another lesson in strength? I shall be glad to teach you."

"Who is this quack?" Sheena asked. "I've never understood people who devote their whole lives to religion. Worst part is, they're all miserable and they want everyone else to be miserable too."

Gantetsu didn't look miserable. Smiling broadly, he addressed Sheena. "Some believe they have power through brute strength. Some believe they have power through cultivated skill. Some believe they have power through leeching off their father's name. All shall be undone. You, who believe in your strength, are little more than cripples standing before me. One good breath will knock you all over."

"Stop it!" Nanami shouted. "Go away!"

"I'll pound another bump onto that shiny head of yours," Viktor threatened, advancing on Gantetsu. "Why don't you leave us alone?"

"Peace, Viktor," Riou commanded. Viktor obeyed, though he continued to glare at the monk. Nanami looked appalled that her brother had stopped Viktor. Riou walked forward to study their tormentor. "The last time we met, you said that some things must be done from weakness. I think I understand your words better now. Even with my Rune, I'll never be powerful enough to force peace on my own. If I want to end this war, I must reach out to others."

The monk's smile was crafty. "Even with the aid of friends, what awaits you will be harrowing. Perhaps it will be too much for you to bear?"

"I didn't refuse the power," Riou answered. "It's my responsibility to use it justly. What about you? Do you mean to stand in front of this stone until the end of time, giving advice to everyone who comes along?"

Squatting down, Gantetsu looked Riou in the eye. "I suppose not. Even if I had until the end of time, I'd surely not reach all the people who need my advice by standing here. If you've room for an excommunicated monk in your army, then I would be glad dispense my wisdom there. At least, I'll dispense it until they get so sick and tired that they try to throw me out. Try, mind you." He started laughing again. Then, collecting his huge staff, he started down the street.

When Gantetsu was gone, Freed led them in the opposite direction, towards the mayoral palace. Flik noted that there were fewer refugees than the last time he'd been in the city, but officials were still busy handing out food and setting up shelters. One of the officials noted Freed and came scurrying up, blocking the path forward.

"Lord Yamamoto, whatever are you-" The official suddenly picked out Riou. "Uh, Lord Riou, is there…any problem with the government? Have you come to see General Arnhem?"

"Our business lies in the crypt," Freed declared. "We're not here to level any judgement against the government."

Flik was tempted to ask what was so important in the crypt, but held his tongue. Riou nodded, as if he understood perfectly well what Freed's intentions were. The official hesitantly yielded the path. Freed walked on, through the gilded entrance. Inside, he took a route that was unfamiliar to Flik, leading away from the mayor's office and the throne chamber. The corridor led to a small courtyard behind the palace, a place filled with small rock pools, gardens of blooming flowers, and a set of stone steps leading downward into the earth.

"It is said that Bernand, when he built this palace, had this garden constructed first. He abandoned the old tradition of cremation to have his body, and those of his descendants, buried beneath the earth." Freed advanced towards the steps. There was a lantern, already lit, waiting on a pedestal at the top of the stairs. "He wanted those who followed him to reflect on the past- both the good and the ill. He wanted them to see the past and understand that all men are mortal."

At the bottom of the steps, Freed pushed the unadorned iron doors open. Beyond was a passage of stone with niches carved into the walls. Full of curiosity, Flik came closer to get a better look at the first niche. There was no elaborate sarcophagus, no coffin at all. What rested on the carved stone was simply a skeleton, clothes and flesh long rotted away. Nanami choked back on a half gasp, half shriek.

The smell of decay that rolled out of the crypt wasn't unfamiliar to Flik, but it was unexpected. He fought a moment of nausea and backed out of the tomb. He wasn't the only one who did so. In a moment, only Freed stood beyond the doors.

"Eww," Sheena commented.

"The descendants of Bernand probably thought as you do," Freed continued. "Yet none of them ever sought to change what he started." Flik's eyes tracked down the hall. Each niche was occupied, most of them with bones, but further back he was certain he could make out bodies.

Thankfully, Freed didn't enter any further. Holding the lamp up, he said, "Here you will find the kings of Dunan- great warriors who commanded mighty armies and waged battle against Scarlet Moon, Harmonia, and later Highland. Yet, for all of their power, for all of their battles, they couldn't safeguard the kingdom. Here also you will find those who gained power after the monarchy fell- the mayors of South Window. Believing themselves the successors of the monarchs, they continued the wars, especially against Scarlet Moon."

He let the lamp fall back to his side, enshrouding the crypt in darkness again. "Our history became like a chain. We fought Scarlet Moon because we always had, and because we always would. Lord Granmeyer got caught up in this too, but I know he never enjoyed it. He was a gentle man, but even he could not figure out how to end the ancient hatreds. Two years ago, when he retreated from the war with the Toran Republic, many people called him a coward, but he told me that it had been the correct decision."

Freed's head slumped down. "In a better world, Lord Granmeyer's gentleness would've been acclaimed as a virtue. In this world, the people damned it as a sin. Despite that, I'm proud of Lord Granmeyer. When I looked at him, I saw hope, even if I didn't understand it."

He turned about suddenly, staring straight at Riou. "Now I think I do. Anyone can win a war, even Luca Blight, but only someone special can win the peace. This crypt is testament to the futility of strength alone. Instead, I will follow the gentle path, the path of forgiveness. I will follow that path even into the heart of my land's oldest enemy, because it is the only path that offer hope to my eyes."

Blowing the lantern out, Freed started back towards the doors, leaving only a sliver of light to illume the tomb. "Lord Riou, with your strength, win the war, but remember, it is your forgiveness that will win the peace."


	53. Chapter 53 Unexpected Surprises

**Chapter 53 – Unexpected Surprises**

They departed from South Window the following morning, riding horses that Freed had requisitioned from the palace stables. Flik found himself riding a fat yellow-dun mare with the unfortunate name of Butterball. He soon found himself missing Nightstar's sleek grace. Butterball was serviceable enough, but the trip north and east from South Window towards Radat was wearying. By late afternoon, when they arrived at the riverside town, his ribs were bothering him again, a sign that the injury was not yet fully recovered.

Riou led them through the town towards Shu's house, where they were planning to spend the night. The streets were quiet, but as they approached the mansion and the river, Flik could hear a disturbance in the distance. He stood in the stirrups, trying to get a better view, but could see little. A number of riverboats were docked near the sluice gates, and there was a crowd of people listlessly lining the shore on the South Window side of the river. Up by the sluice, the dock workers were manning barricades to keep the mob in check.

Shu's dwelling stood apart from the rest of the town, secluded behind an orchard of mulberry trees. This was the first time that Flik had ever seen it. The main residence was a single-story wooden house that, while expansive, was not ostentatious. By the time they reached the doors, someone had noted their arrival and a butler was waiting to greet them.

Shu had given Riou a letter to present to the butler. The butler read it over for a moment before bowing. "Welcome to the abode of Master Shu, Lord Riou. I shall have dinner and guest rooms prepared. I shall also dispatch a man to see about the river transport."

As they walked through the doors, Flik asked the butler, "Will there be any problems? It looks pretty unsettled down by the riverside."

"It's been that way for a while," the butler replied. "They are refugees, trying to flee the war." He shook his head. "Most don't have the money to pay for a trip down the river. Even if they did, there's nothing for them in Banner Village. It's said that Toran is refusing to accept the refugees that get as far as the border."

"That's ridiculous," Sheena interjected. "Once we get to Gregminster, I'll make my father open the borders."

Flik had his doubts as to Sheena's ability to set policy but held his tongue. Instead, he looked around the inside of Shu's house. Shu had been a successful speculator in goods, and the furnishings reflected that. On the walls were long scrolls depicting scenes from nature- tall mountains and raging rivers. There were also porcelain vases in niches. However, what really caught Flik's attention were the boxes that he saw piled in one of the side rooms.

He spoke to the butler again, pointing into the side room. "You planning on moving your master's assets soon?"

The butler nodded. "The master's instructions were very specific on that point. We had to wait until the Highlanders had taken the town once before we could begin moving stuff out. Now his commands are to move the important things out with all the speed we can muster. I don't understand him sometimes."

The guest rooms were along the west corridor of the house. Flik rested in his room until dinner, letting his ribs continue to recover. Dinner was served in the largest room in the house, at a low table that required the participants to sit on the floor to eat. The meal was a fish chowder that was spicier than Flik cared for, served alongside salad and bread. The wine that went with the meal was the same wine that Shu had offered to Viktor and Flik during the Festival of Candles. Flik liked it no better this time.

During the meal, Riou asked, "Sheena, what's the Toran Republic like? How much help will they be able to provide?"

"I'd think we'll be able to provide lots," Sheena answered. "All the generals are veterans of the Liberation War, as are the soldiers. Why, with twenty thousand soldiers helping your army, you'll be able to crush Luca Blight when he takes the field. I bet you the Dragon Knights alone will rout his army."

Freed looked incredulous. "Are the armies of Toran really that strong?"

"No," Viktor replied, cutting Sheena off sharply. "At least, the amount of help that we're likely to get won't be that strong."

"So, the little man's talk is simply bluster," Oulan commented.

"How can you say that, Viktor?" Sheena objected. "I know the Liberation Army had at least that many men by the end of the war."

Flik continued the rebuke that Viktor had begun. "Sheena, you need to understand that simply because the army has twenty thousand men doesn't mean your father will be able to call on all of them. Part of the army will be garrisoned in the south at Pannu Yakuta. Other units are likely stationed in the Dana and Senan provinces. Likewise, the Dragon Knights reside in Goya, to the far west. None of those forces will be available in the limited time we have."

"Can we get any help from them?" Nanami asked.

"There may be units the capital region of Arlus that can help us in time," Flik conceded. "The garrison at Kwaba Fortress, for instance, but I don't know how many men it has currently."

"I see," Riou said quietly. "Shu wouldn't have sent me on this mission if he didn't think some good would come of it. I don't see any choice but to press on and find out what aid the Toran Republic might give us."

The following morning the butler informed them that a boat had been hired to take them down the river to Banner. Collecting their belongings and extra food from Shu's larder, they set off for the docks minus the horses, which would be of less use down river. Once again, the winds were out of the southwest, making the morning hot and dry. The refugees from yesterday were visible along the banks of Dunan River. Upon closer inspection, Flik saw that a veritable tent town had sprung up.

"We need to do something about this," Nanami declared.

Flik had seen many refugees during the four months of this war. Images sprang to his mind- the long lines of people marching through the cold away from the mercenary fort, the brother and sister caught between the steel of Highland and his own Fire Spears south of Muse, and the shadowy forms that he had hid amongst while fleeing South Window. His heart suddenly ached, filled with the pain and suffering he'd experienced during the struggle. Before he could tear up, he shook his head. "To help them, we must win. We must defeat Luca Blight and liberate the occupied parts of Jowston."

"But isn't there more that we could do?" Nanami protested. "These people are in a part of Jowston that we control. We need to do more to help them."

"It shames me to see the people like this," Freed said. "I've been so caught up in the war that I've neglected to see those who're suffering the most."

"We could send a message to Shu," Riou suggested. "If there's anyone who can organize aid to these people, he's the one."

"Order it," Nanami commanded tersely. "Order it and he'll listen."

Flik was struck by the vehemence in Nanami's tone. He could see that the others were as well. Riou nodded somberly. "When we get to the boat, I'll send a messenger back to Shu's mansion. That's all we can do now."

Someone had cleared a path through the tents towards the docks. As they walked down the path, Flik couldn't help but notice the weary, sweat-lined faces all around him. Some of those faces were dull, but others burned sullenly. He slipped his sword slightly out of its sheath, ready to draw it if the need arose.

It didn't. Though a few dirty children were curious enough to approach Viktor, Flik, and Riou, none of the adults spoke to them. In fact, the first noise that Flik heard distinctly above the muffled babbling of the refugees was someone crying. He glanced around, trying to locate the source, but he didn't see any wailing kids.

Viktor located the lachrymose man first. Pointing towards the docks, Viktor asked, "What's he got to be upset about?"

Flik regarded the man and found himself agreeing with Viktor's assessment. The man in front of them, now quietly sobbing, appeared to be the antithesis of a refugee. His curly brown hair was well groomed. He was wearing a long, rose coat with gold and white edging, a lavender scarf tied, a spotless white pants. He even had a feather pinned to his collar.

Sheena started laughing. "What a loser!"

"Such is often the case among the nobility," Oulan commented. Flik saw her smirk.

Nanami, anger evident on her face, ran straight for the noble and shouted, "Why are you crying? Look all around you; there are hundreds of people who are worse off. Can't you help them?"

The noble started out the sound of Nanami's voice, but apparently only heard her first question. "Ah, what is this, but an angel of mercy? It is too late for moi. I have fallen too far from grace to be saved." Taking one of her hands, he sighed dramatically.

As the rest of them arranged themselves in a half-circle around Nanami and the noble, Flik saw that she was blushing, her anger completely forgotten. "What? I'm not an angel."

"I have betrayed the bonds of friendship," the noble lamented. "I deserve not the sweet embrace of paradise, but only the flames of eternal torment."

He was still holding Nanami's hand. Her mood was starting to sour again. "Let go…please."

"The precious symbol of our friendship, lost because of my errant fingers, slipped from my grasp into the traitorous water, forever beyond my reach. How shall I explain this sin to him? How can I ever repent? Nay, no action of mine may expiate the gulf of this offense." He stared directly at Nanami. "That, fair angel, is why I cry."

Nanami finally managed to wrench her hand away. "I'm sorry I asked."

"Why don't you take a boat down the river and look?" Riou asked. "That's got to be better than waiting here."

The noble gasped and slapped his forehead. "Such brilliance!" He focused his attention on Riou. "My lord, forgive me, as I misjudged you. Your words have spoken to my heart. Let us undertake this quest together, for the sake of all that is just, true, and righteous in this world. For the sake of friendship!"

Flik leaned in close to Riou and whispered, "You do realize that we have absolutely no chance of finding his lost trinket. I don't think he's even told us what it is yet."

"It's somewhere down this river," Riou answered, in a similar whisper. "As long as we're going in the right direction, we might as well put up with him."

"If it gets too bad, we can always ditch him," Viktor added.

The noble went right on ignoring the conversation around him. "What is more gallant than to quest for friendship? I, Simone Verdricci, pledge my undying loyalty to you. Together, let us scour the earth for my lost rose brooch!"

Freed adjusted his glasses. "All of this…is over a rose brooch?"

"Verdricci," Sheena mused. "Oh great, he's one of ours. Lord Riou, you mustn't take this man as an example of what you'll find in the republic. Since the end of the Liberation War, we've got far too many nobles like him with time and money on their hands."

"Such a cruel thing for the son of the president to say," Simone retorted. "We, who fought so gallantly during the Liberation War, are now cast aside during the peace."

"Yeah, yeah, enough with the theatrics," Sheena gripped. "Let's get on the boat and get me back to the republic."

The boat that Shu's men had hired turned out to be a fat tub of a galley. The captain, who was also fat, smiled broadly as his passengers embarked. "We don't usually do more than carry goods up and down the river, but seeing as you have the potch, I'll gladly take you to Banner. I'll even set aside my cabin, humble as it is, for your use."

"I thank you for your gracious patronage, my good man," Simone answered, bowing artfully. "I shall remember your sacrifice, even as I partake of your quarters."

Sheena restrained his countryman. "Hold on a moment. Since I'm the son of the president, I think I should get the room."

Simone's answering glare was icy. "What about the prerogatives of the nobility? You don't expect me to sleep out here like some commoner, do you?"

"If you must, I suppose you can have the floor," Sheena relented. "You don't snore, do you?"

Nanami shoved them both aside. "The room's mine, thank you very much. Riou, get my bags and carry them to the room." She walked between the two men, heading for the cabin. Riou, carrying several bags in his arms, followed after his sister. Both Sheena and Simone opened their mouths to protest, but Oulan moved to block their path, scowling fiercely at them. Neither aristocrat continued the argument after that.

Even before Nanami had opened the door, the ship was casting off, oars propelling it out into the sluggish flow of the Dunan River. While Sheena and Simone slunk off to commiserate, Oulan set herself in the center of the deck and started scanning the ship for threats. Viktor, Flik, and Freed walked over to talk with the captain.

"Do you make this trip often?" Freed asked.

"A couple of times a year, my lord, usually during the summer, when the south wind helps us on the return journey. There's not so much business during the winter, when the mountain passes are all snowed over."

"There can't be a lot of potch on a route like this," Viktor commented. "Not unless you've got some smuggling friends who want to avoid various taxes." He winked knowingly. Freed's eyes widened.

Manfully, the captain managed not to blush. "I wouldn't have the faintest idea of what you're talking about. We run finished goods down to Banner and pick up fish from the village and ore from the Banner Mines. There's nothing illegal about that, especially since we're at peace with the Republic."

It didn't take Flik long to figure out that the trade probably didn't stop simply because of a war. Instead of focusing on that, he asked, "Have you had any troubles with Highland or bandits?"

The captain's happy demeanor slipped away at the mention of attacks. "There's been a few incidents. Sometimes the Highlanders will sneak down and try to burn ships that anchor for the night. As for bandits, well, they're always out there, though I suppose they might be worse now that there's a war again. I've got guards." He gestured towards a pair of men at the stern of the ship. "And I've got you guys. Bandits usually attack the weak or the inattentive. I don't intend my ship to be either of those things."

Flik nodded his agreement with the attitude. Viktor was moving on to the next question. "So, what have you got to eat on this tub? I hope your cook is good."

The captain started laughing, but was cut off by a shriek from the direction of the cabin. Oulan was instantly sprinting towards the door. Flik didn't wait a moment before taking off after her, with Viktor and Freed right beside him. Long before they got there, the door to the cabin burst open, and an intruder rushed out. He was running quickly, ducking behind the edge of the cabin. All Flik could note was the long blue hair done up in a ponytail.

"Damn stowaway!" the captain shouted. "All hands, seize the intruder."

Seizing the intruder was harder than Flik would've thought. He was extremely agile, and faster than anyone else on the ship. He led them on a merry chase around the cabin, then down into the hold. Viktor and Flik waited at the top of the stairs while the captain sent his hired guards in.

Nanami and Riou appeared, unscathed, from the cabin. Nanami marched over to the captain and turned her wrath on him. "He was under the bed! Who knows what would've happened had I been in there alone with him?"

"I'm terribly sorry about this, miss," the captain answered, bowing slightly. He looked angry rather than sorry. "My men will catch him and toss him into the river."

The stowaway suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs, pausing long enough for Flik to register the pointed elven ears -with hoop earrings- that poked out amidst the intruder's blue hair. Both Viktor and Flik lunged for the elf, but their hands caught nothing but air as he ran past them. In the next moment, Flik had to bring up his hands to shield himself as he collided into Viktor, who collapsed on top of him.

"Nobody in the world could be that fast," Viktor muttered.

Flik's nose was being jammed into a hole in the planking. "Off of me," Flik mumbled into the board.

"Oh, right." Viktor got up, letting Flik back to his feet. Flik shook his head and tried to catch sight of the chase. The elf was now making a mockery of Sheena and Simone's efforts to capture him. Oulan entered the fray, swinging one of her powerful punches at the elf. She missed, hitting Simone squarely on the side of the head instead. The noble crumpled to the deck, unconscious. Flik cringed.

Even so, the elf was running out of places to hide. The captain began organizing efforts up on the deck such that people stopped chasing him and took up assigned positions to wait for him. Slowly, they herded him towards the bow of the ship. Now that the elf was no longer dashing around, Flik could get a better look at him. There was something in his angular face -the sharp beak of his nose in particular- that struck Flik as familiar.

The elf put up his hands in a gesture of peace, though he did have an unstrung bow and a quiver on his back. "I didn't mean any harm," he pleaded quickly. "I wasn't going to hurt the girl. All I was trying to do was get away from the Highland army."

"You can try your luck in the water," the captain growled. "The river will take you as far as you need to go." His men began to advance on the elf.

The elf's head swiveled, looking from person to person, stopping when he spotted Flik. "Wait, I know some of you. We've worked together before, during the last war…uh, Flik…and Viktor too! We're old pals."

Viktor scratched his head. "Do you remember him, Flik?"

Flik dredged his memories, trying to sort through the elves. "Is that Rubi?"

"Nah, Rubi's the antisocial elf," Sheena explained, walking forward from where Simone was busy rubbing the side of his head. "That's Stallion. He's the cool elf."

The captain glanced at Flik. "Is he with you? If so, he pays the fee like the rest of you. Otherwise, he's in the drink."

Stallion gulped. "Of course I'm with them. Anything to get me further away from the fighting."

Out of the corner of his eye, Flik saw Riou coming up to join them. "It's not my decision. You'll have to talk to Riou, here, and see if he'll let you join us."

Getting down on his knees, Stallion implored, "Lord Riou, I beg you to take me into your service as long as you have need of me. Unlike humans, who sway back and forth like the wind, an elf's word is never broken. I swear on my hometree of Lukiae Ende Towayo to aid you faithfully until you release me from your service."

Riou was studying the elf closely. Even Nanami had overcome her initial surprise and had walked over to examine the stowaway. "Look at those ears," she exclaimed. "What is he?"

"He's an elf," Viktor answered. "Never heard of them?" Nanami shook her head. Viktor continued, "They live longer than humans, seclude themselves in forest strongholds, and generally have an arrogant attitude when it comes to dealing with other races."

"I can't help it if we're superior," Stallion quipped. "But I can explain the long and glorious history of elves much better than a mere human could ever hope." He turned back to Riou. "If you'll let me join you."

"Agreed," Riou declared. "I'll pay for his travel fee. He'd probably make a good runner, seeing as he's so fast."

Flik thought about it for a moment. "Yeah. Over distance, he's even better than a man on horseback, but you'll want to keep him away from the front lines."

Stallion's features paled, the blood draining from his pointy ears first. "Um…what have I gotten myself into?"

Viktor hauled the elf to his feet. "Congratulations, you've just volunteered to join the New State Army, the heroic defenders of Jowston against the hordes of Highland!"

Stallion fainted, falling into Viktor's arms.

The current, plus the rowers, slowly pushed the galley south along the Dunan River. Close to the lake, the river was almost half a mile wide, and its current was sluggish. With little respite from the heat, the group sat out of the way on the deck and talked. Riou asked questions about the Liberation War, and those who'd served in the conflict took turns recalling the events. Viktor spoke of meeting Tir McDohl in Gregminster and helping him escape. Flik, not wanting to stir up memories of Odessa, spoke mostly of the battles, including his own disastrous charge at Scarleticia. Stallion, having recovered from his swoon, recounted the destruction of Lukiae Ende Towayo by the Burning Mirror.

Nanami shook her head. "How did you put up with it all? How could you stand to keep fighting?"

"Who would've stopped Barbarossa and Windy if we hadn't?" Viktor replied, shrugging his shoulders. "It's not like any of us likes watching people die or things being destroyed. Would it have been better to submit in the name of peace?"

"But weren't there any negotiations?" Nanami asked.

"No," Flik stated. "I think we always understood that we had to topple the emperor, or he, no, Windy through him, would've ended up enslaving the country to the Sovereign Rune. There wasn't any going back for either side."

"It feels the same way this time," Nanami said sadly. "The only way to end this war will be for one side to crush the other."

"That's not true," Viktor argued. "It's Luca Blight who wants to keep the war going. All we have to do is get rid of him and I'm sure someone more reasonable will come forward to negotiate."

Flik laughed. "It's not as though we want to conquer Highland, after all."

Nanami looked to her brother. "What does your Rune say? How much more do we have to break before we'll have peace?"

"As little as possible," Riou declared. Nanami's expression went sour at her brother's dodge. "If Luca were dead, maybe Jowy and I could work together to make peace," Riou mused.

"We should focus on stopping Luca first," Flik chided.

Riou settled his gaze on Viktor and Flik. "What did Tir McDohl's Rune show him?"

Flik hesitated at the question, allowing Viktor to jump in with a quick answer. "He didn't talk about it much. It must've worn on him, though. He always tried to put up a brave face, but there were times, a few anyway, where the pain showed through. I don't think I'd ever want to bear a True Rune on my body."

"I see," Riou murmured. "I think I'd like to meet him one day. I'd ask him how he managed his Rune, how he tried to make sense of the things it showed him."

"I'm not sure you could just meet him," Flik warned. "He refused the position of president after the end of the war. I don't think anyone's seen him since that time."

Looking at the distant shore, Riou whispered, "He'll never age, not unless he refuses the Rune. The world marches on, while he's stuck outside of time. I understand why he hides himself."

The conversation slowed after the discussion of Tir McDohl. As the galley moved further south, the distant hills grew closer, and the mountains beyond them came into view. The west bank of the river grew up into bluffs more than a hundred feet high. Flik scanned the cliffs nervously, afraid that bandits might use them to drop rocks on unsuspecting boats. The captain charted a course away from the cliffs too, bringing the galley closer to the East Muse shore. The plains to the east remained quiet.

As the shadows began to extend off the western cliffs, Flik spotted one of the burned wrecks on the east shore. It was lying in the shallow water, only the charred remains of its upper deck and masts visible. The captain gave the gutted hulk a wide berth, and they sailed on. Despite that, when night finally came, they anchored on the East Muse side of the river, rather than under the cliffs.

Viktor and Flik took the first watch of the night, pacing up and down the deck, careful not to step on the sleeping forms of the crew or their fellow travelers. The Scarlet Moon was nearly new and had quickly followed the sun behind the cliffs. The Blue Moon was nearly full, its rising giving enough light for Flik to see reasonably well. Still, every creak of the galley made him twitch a little. He kept his eyes on the plains, trying not to imagine that the shifting shadows might be Highlanders creeping up on the ship.

Flik was grateful when Freed relieved him for the second watch. He walked over to a likely spot by the cabin and lay down. He continued to fret about the ship being torched, but managed to sleep regardless. Dawn woke him soon enough, to find that the ship was unburned. The captain was shouting the crew into action, and the galley was rowed out into the current for a second day of journeying.

The eastern bank of the Dunan became wooded to the south, rising away into forested hills and mountains. The channel narrowed to about half its earlier width, its current turned more turbulent. Smaller streams tumbled out of the heights, adding their strength to the flow as it rushed south.

As the hours pasted, Flik got bored watching the scenery. To divert his attention, he sparred with Viktor. This quickly drew a crowd, and soon everyone who didn't have a task was out watching the two of them at practice. Flik picked up the pace, not wanting to look bad in front of an audience. Viktor smiled, responding with equal vigor. He didn't want to be shown up either.

Soon their thrusts and parries were approaching full speed, the two swords clashing together above the roar of the current. Flik employed all that he had learned in the Warrior's Village, patiently waiting for Viktor to give an opening. But Viktor had long experience with the sword, if less formal training, and he had raw strength that Flik didn't. Flik's arms began to hurt, punished by blocking his friend's strikes.

They began to circle on the deck. Flik feinted once, and twice, dipping his right shoulder, then snapping it back up and lunging. Viktor parried the strike aside, turning the motion into an elbow charge. Flik managed to sidestep so that Viktor only grazed him.

Flik kept his feet and turned to face Viktor once again, blinking sweat out of his eyes. Viktor was flagging too. The next mistake would probably decide the winner. Abandoning his patience, Flik lunged again, driving Viktor back with a flurry of blows. Finally, Viktor let his blade stray a bit too high during one of his parries, and Flik thrust low.

The galley suddenly lurched, its bottom scraping along something unyielding. Flik's attack went wide as he struggled for his balance. Viktor stepped back, then toppled over backwards. Flik fell on his right knee, banging it hard against the wooden planking. By this time, winning the match was the last thing on Flik's mind. The galley shuddered as a bone-chilling screech came from the hold, followed by a sharp snapping sound.

For one long moment, the galley remained held in place, but it jerked forward in the current once again, quickly regaining its speed. The captain was on his feet in an instant.

"Get down to the hold!" he shouted at the first mate. "I want a damage report on the double."

"What did we hit?" Sheena asked shakily.

One of the hired guards had sprinted to the aft of the galley. Now he shouted the answer. "Submerged wreck, captain! We snapped her main mast, it looks like."

The captain stamped his feet on the deck. "Damn if that isn't all we did. We're taking water, I can feel it. Man the bilge pumps!"

The first mate was back in a few minutes to confirm the damage. "We've popped some planks. I've got some men pounding them back in place, but that's only a jury-rig. We may need to beach her to see the full extent of what needs to be done."

"Can we get to Banner?" Riou asked.

"We'll get you there," the captain replied. "She'll hold together at least that far. I know my ship, she's not going to go down this time."

The captain was true to his word. Late in the afternoon, Flik spotted the piers of Banner village. The settlement wasn't terribly large, maybe a couple hundred houses built along the east bank of the Dunan River. The local fishing boats were coming in as the galley maneuvered to come alongside the dock.

Their disembarkation was swift. Riou thanked the captain for seeing them safely down the river. The captain merely inclined his head in acknowledgement and went back to seeing to his ship. Simone rushed ahead, declaring that he was off to search for his rose brooch. He immediately began questioning each person he came across.

Riou chuckled at the noble's antics. When Flik raised a quizzical eyebrow, Riou explained, "It's refreshing to see someone who's so single-minded in pursuit of what he wants, even if it is trivial. Would that I could end the war with such determination." He sighed. "Never mind. Let's find an inn. I'd prefer not to have any more unexpected surprises for a while."

Now that was something Flik could agree with. Testing his sore right knee, he started down the street after Riou, the setting sun at his back.


	54. Chapter 54 Treading Destiny's Course

**Chapter 54 – Treading Destiny's Course**

Walking through the dusty streets of the town, Flik got the impression that Banner had seen nothing of the war. Fishermen, traders, women, and children all mingled outside, going about their daily activities. There were no signs of soldiers or even of a militia watch, though the latter existed, without a doubt. The peaceful scene didn't comfort Flik. His eyes kept darting from person to person, his mind assessing each potential threat and how best to deal with it. When he became consciously aware of this, he tried to suppress the instinct. It was a disturbing sign that he'd become comfortable with violence.

A child suddenly darted in front of the group, nearly causing Flik to go for his sword. He caught himself, turning the motion into massaging the back of his left hand. The child pointed to Riou and exclaimed, "Hey mister, you're dressed just like me!"

It was true, Flik saw. Riou was being confronted by an eight-year-old version of himself, except that the little boy lacked his circlet. Riou, in an amused manner, answered, "We seem to be twins. Or at least brothers."

Nanami laughed. "I could always use another little brother. My current one doesn't know his place."

"It is quite the likeness," Freed commented. "Especially considering that he's never seen you."

"Are you a fan of Lord Riou too?" the boy asked Riou. "My name's Ko, and my mother made this for me!"

"You think the mother's a tad obsessed?" Flik whispered to Viktor. "I mean, what normal person has the time to create a replica outfit of someone they've only heard about?"

"Maybe you're jealous?" Viktor retorted. "I bet you'd be flattered if he was running around in a little Blue Thunder getup?"

"Blue Lightning," Flik corrected. "You know as well as I do that it's Blue Lightning."

"There's another cool person at the inn by the stream," Ko remarked. "I wanted to talk with him, except the mean old blond guy keeps shooing me away."

Riou gave Ko a string of potch. "Thank you very much. If you see a noble with a rose brooch, tell him we're staying at that inn."

There was a young redheaded woman sweeping the front of the inn. Her eyes widened in surprise as Riou's party walked up. She hastily bowed over her broom. "Good evening, sirs and lady, are all of you planning to stay with us?"

Nanami eyed the building critically. "Seems a little small for all of us." Flik smiled. The inn was small, consisting of only a single story, but he'd spent the night in places smaller than this.

"If you are concerned about your privacy, I'm sure we can make arrangements," the redhead answered. "You gentlemen don't mind sharing rooms, do you?"

Sheena frowned. Viktor slapped him on the back and said, "No problem. As long as you've got plenty of food, I'm happy."

"I'm not fond of cramped quarters," Stallion remarked. "But food would be welcome."

Riou nodded. "I agree. We'll stay here for the night."

The redhead started. She'd obviously not noticed Riou. Now that she saw him, she studied him carefully, so much so that Nanami frowned and Riou began to blush. Viktor nudged Flik, whispering, "See, he's got all the luck with the ladies. Give Riou five minutes and she'll be off to Dunan Castle on the next boat."

Maybe Nanami heard the comment and maybe she didn't, but she stepped between Riou and redhead, glowering. "There's nothing on my brother's face. I wiped it down this morning. Why don't you go back to sweeping, if you've got so much free time?"

"I'm sorry. It simply that your brother reminds me of one of our other guests. Not that they look the same, but they act similarly. I don't know how to explain it."

Nanami grabbed her brother and marched him towards the doors. "Come on, Riou, I want to get my stuff into my room." They disappeared into the inn.

Sheena sidled up next to the girl. "You know, you remind me of someone too. How about we go to your room and talk about this a little." She jabbed him in the ribs with the handle of the broom, sniffing disdainfully, then darted back through the doors before Sheena recovered. Flik couldn't help but start laughing and Viktor joined him immediately. Even Stallion was smirking appreciatively.

"Stop laughing," Sheena protested. "She got quite a swing with that thing. I think I'm going to bruise." When this only drew more laughter, he put on his best haughty face and sashayed proudly through the doors. Flik recovered enough from chuckling to follow him in a few moments later.

The inn was actually the house of a well-to-do family where the older children had already moved out and the parents were letting the rooms for extra potch. Flik learned that the redheaded girl was named Ellie and was the middle child among nine. The other children were also red haired to varying degrees. They were busy setting a large table for supper.

The mother/innkeeper was speaking to Riou when Flik and Viktor came up. "If you would be so kind, sir, as to go around back and down to the stream to fetch our other guests. The younger one said he wanted to catch us some fish to go with dinner, but it's almost time to eat right now." She looked away to glance crossly at one of her children. "Aaron! You know better than to run with your hands full of plates. You stop that right now."

"I'll get them," Riou said.

"Oh thank you. Oliver! Those knives are not to be thrown at your sisters."

Riou headed for the back door. On a lark, Viktor and Flik decided to accompany him. Flik decided that meeting this stranger was probably safer than remaining inside the battlefield of a house. The door opened onto a plank walkway over marshy ground. The light was starting to fail, and Flik could hear the droning of the night insects.

Riou led the way, carefully avoiding the planks that were rotten or mossy. Flik began to wonder how far back the path led when he heard the sound of flowing water. In the murk ahead, he could make out two figures, one standing and one sitting with a fishing pole extended out into the water. The standing one was wearing a long green robe and had blond hair done up in a long ponytail.

"Who's there?" the blond challenged. He began to turn, his broad axe suddenly becoming visible.

"We're from the inn," Riou replied.

Flik might've added more, but he found himself unable to speak, shock overwhelming his brain. The figure continued turning, revealing a blue shirt and pants, and crossed scars on his cheek.

"From the inn?" the sitting one asked. "Is it dinnertime already? I guess you were right, Gremio, we weren't going to catch any fish today." He stood up, collecting a bucket of bait in one hand and his weapon of choice, a long staff, in the other. The ends of his red tunic flopped down over tan pants. As usual, his green bandanna was tied back amidst his black hair. He turned around and, with a bit of a smile on his face, said, "Hello Viktor. Hello Flik. And you must be the leader of the New State Army, Riou. It's my pleasure to greet you all." His deep brown eyes sparkled, reflecting the setting sun. He nudged Gremio. "See, didn't I tell you we'd meet them again?"

"As always, young master, your perceptions are spot on," Gremio replied.

Flik's feet involuntarily pushed him ahead, straight past Riou. He was peripherally aware that Viktor's emotions were carrying him forward too. Gremio and Tir McDohl had only a moment to flinch before Viktor and Flik caught them up in a giant group hug.

Flik alternated between laughing and crying, but managed to get out, "Where have you two been all this time? Everybody was worried sick when you disappeared from the palace. There were even rumors that you'd been kidnapped."

"From one who faked his own death, that's very shameless," Gremio quipped.

"I didn't have much choice in the matter," Flik said.

"Off of me, you great oafs," Tir protested. "I'd forgotten how strong the two of you are. Not that your little disappearing act fooled me. Had either of you two died, I'm certain my Rune would've let me know. It's rather cruel that way."

More than anything else, mentioning the Soul Eater sobered the scene up. When Viktor and Flik finally disengaged, Viktor asked, "You've still got it, then?"

Tir shrugged. "Of course I've got it. It's not like I'm going to pry it off and leave it by the side of the road for anyone to pick up. There are far too many unscrupulous types out there who wouldn't hesitate at the chance to get that kind of power. Besides, I wouldn't wish the Soul Eater's curse on anyone, not even my worst enemy."

"Young master, I really wish you wouldn't be so casual about that. It makes me worry for you."

Tir patted Gremio on the shoulder. "I suppose you're right. After all, the Rune did bring you back to me. Never mind, it's time for dinner and I'm hungry." He walked past Viktor and Flik, heading towards Riou. "All of this has probably got you confused, but I don't want to talk about it over dinner. I'd rather that my identity not get out, thank you very much." He paused for a moment and looked back towards Viktor and Flik. "Are there any other people who know me here?"

"Sheena and Stallion," Flik answered.

Now Tir frowned. "The elf's okay, but you can't trust Sheena not to blab, especially not with a pretty face nearby. Viktor, Flik, you're going to have to break this to them. I'm not going to waltz in and have them start singing my praises all over town."

"You're taking this hiding thing seriously," Viktor stated.

"It began the moment I accepted the Soul Eater from Ted," Tir replied. "I've been treading destiny's course ever since then."

"But it was your choice to take the Rune?" Riou asked.

"Maybe," Tir allowed. "Is Luc with you? No, stupid question. Of course he's there. He'd probably say that my destiny was set at birth, as immutable as his Tablet of Stars. I'm not sure I believe that, but…" He shrugged again. "Never forget that you're dealing with a will and intelligence greater than your own. I'm sure that the Soul Eater understands me better than I understand it, and that gives it an advantage when it wants to guide me. I bet you the Bright Shield is the same way."

"Now, now, young master. It's not fair of you to challenge him like that. You've had your Rune much longer than he's had his."

Riou looked as though he wanted to ask more questions, but Tir forestalled him. "Later. Now, if Viktor and Flik would kindly precede me in and make sure Stallion and Sheena understand the situation. I'm actually quite hungry for once."

Sudden screaming from the direction of the village halted the conversation. Flik's sword gave a harsh whisper as he drew it from its sheath. Viktor drew the Star Dragon Sword off his back, while Tir dropped the pail of bait to take a firmer grip on his staff. Gremio shifted his axe to both hands, and Riou had his tonfa out.

"Bandits," Gremio warned.

"With apologies to the ones we worked with during the war, I don't really like that sort," Tir said. "I suppose dinner can wait." He sprinted down the planks and into the marsh heading directly towards the fighting.

Flik started after him. He heard Viktor laugh. "Just like old times! It's great."

"Is that really Tir McDohl?" Riou asked.

"The young master is being incredibly impetuous today," Gremio remarked. "More so than normal."

They broke out of the line of trees at the north end of Banner, where the skirmish was raging. In the evening shadows, it was hard to determine the bandits' exact number, but it was clearly a raid in force. As Flik suspected, the town had civilian militia, but they appeared to have been caught off guard by the raid.

Of course, the bandits weren't ready for a flank attack either. Tir was still in the lead as he cracked his staff onto the head of one of the bandits, then swung it around and pulled another off his feet. Flik locked his sword with one of the bandits and drove him to his knees by main force. He heard one of Riou's tonfa cracking bone.

As quickly as it began, the melee ebbed. The bandits were in flight, though the creaking of wagon wheels suggested that they were escaping with loot. The bandit in front of Flik wisely dropped his weapon when Flik put his blade to the bandit's neck. He was the only opponent still conscious at this end of the battle.

The leaders of the village militia approached to find out who had come along and forced the enemy to retreat. They were quite surprised at how few warriors were at Tir's end of the battle. It also turned out that the others from the inn hadn't hung back either. Nanami burst out of the crowd, her rod in hand, and hugged Riou fiercely, chiding him for slipping away from her watchful sight. Simone, a rose brooch pinned prominently on his collar, walked forward to congratulate Riou on a "most masterful military maneuver." When Sheena and Stallion appeared, Viktor intercepted them before they could see Tir and had some quiet, yet forceful, words with them.

The bandit prisoners were turned over to the leaders of the militia, and Riou's party retired to the inn and had a well-deserved dinner consisting mostly of a fish and potato chowder. Throughout the meal, Flik kept glancing in Tir's direction. He couldn't help himself; there were dozens of questions that he wanted to ask. Unfortunately, as soon as they finished eating, Tir and Gremio retired to one of the rooms. Nanami had appropriated another as her sleeping quarters. Oulan posted herself at the head of the hall leading to the guestrooms. The remainder of the men took up spots in the dining room.

Naturally, it didn't take them long to begin discussing Tir's presence, albeit in hushed tones.

"Why would Lord Tir McDohl be in a backwater town like this, of all places?" Sheena asked.

"You don't think he was waiting for me?" Riou wondered aloud.

"Yeah, maybe he's going to work with you," Viktor suggested. "Of all the help we could ever hope to get from Toran, his would definitely be the greatest."

Flik shook his head, then realized no one would see the motion in the darkness and replied, "No. I don't think he's going to join the New State Army. Think about what he said today- he doesn't want people to know where he is. He's trying to hide himself, that's why he was here."

"Seems an utter waste," Simone said. "He's the hero of our country. He ought to return to Gregminster. We can protect him well enough."

"In the middle of a human city?" Stallion protested. "Never. The best place for Lord McDohl would be among the elves. We understand what it is to have long lives and to live apart from humanity. We could protect him behind our strong enchantments and illusions."

"Gentlemen, let's not argue," Freed chided. He was ignored.

"How strong were those enchantments against the Burning Mirror?" Simone retorted.

"That was the fault of those cursed Dwarves," Stallion argued back, raising his voice. "And you stinking humans. You're always ready to seize upon any new weapon, regardless of the consequences."

Flik heard the noble and the elf rise to their feet. Their discussion was about to degenerate rapidly into a brawl. Knowing what Viktor was likely to do, Flik crept towards Stallion, grabbing him from behind. From the inglorious squawk that Simone emitted, Viktor had similarly restrained the noble.

"Okay, let's calm down now," Flik ordered.

"I am calm," Stallion seethed. "You humans just make me edgy, that's all. If you don't mind, I think I'll sleep outside. Much better for my nerves than being cooped up with a bunch of smelly humans."

Flik released his grip on the elf, who ducked out the front door as quickly as he could. When Stallion was gone, Viktor let Simone go.

"What an ungrateful creature!" the noble complained. "We fought a war to make sure they could keep living on their homeland and that's how they treat us?"

"I think I understand," Riou murmured softly, "why Tir McDohl chooses not to return."

The room was silent. Flik nodded his assent to Riou's rebuke. Viktor probably was doing the same, though Flik couldn't see him. But what of Sheena and Simone, not to mention Stallion? Did they understand Tir McDohl's actions?

Given how hot it was inside the inn, Flik almost envied Stallion, but the droning of the night insects kept him from going outside. He was used to sleeping in cramped, uncomfortable quarters, so he did manage to rest. In the morning, Gremio emerged from Tir's room to make breakfast, but Tir remained out of sight. Nanami joined the men for the meal, complaining about how poorly she had slept. Flik didn't sympathize, though he also didn't tell her how foolish she sounded.

Midway through the meal, there was a knock at the door. Ellie got up to answer it. From his spot at the table, Flik could see her speaking with one of the militiamen. The man's face was stern as he delivered his news, and Ellie started in surprise at one point. When she finally closed the door and turned towards the table, Flik could see how distressed she was.

"It's Ko. He didn't return home last night, and now the bandits have sent a ransom demand."

All of the eating stopped. "That's terrible!" Gremio exclaimed. "What is the town going to do about it?"

Ellie was on the verge of tears. "Nothing. They won't pay the ransom because they don't want to encourage more kidnapping."

"Why don't they rescue him?" Viktor asked.

"Nobody goes up into the mountains where the bandits have their fort," Ellie answered, sniffing. Suddenly she grew angry. "Oh, the cowards, all of them! They're not going to risk themselves for the sake of a child."

The door in the hall banged open. Tir was standing there, tying on his bandanna. "Then we'll have to do it ourselves. Gremio, are you ready to go?"

"Of course, young master."

"I'm joining you," Riou declared.

"Yes," Nanami added. "Kidnappers must be punished. I'll beat them all until they're sorry." Oulan nodded her agreement.

Flik got up from his chair. It wasn't going to be that easy, but he did admire Nanami's willingness to risk herself. "I think we'd all better go," he said.

"To think that this is happening in South Window territory," Freed replied bitterly. "Even if it wasn't my official duty, I'd go with you."

"Right on," Viktor spoke. Sheena and Simone were also on their feet, and Stallion was waiting for them by the front door.

The elf shrugged. "Even I can't run when it's a little kid in danger, human or elf."

Tir walked over to Ellie. "Don't worry. Just tell the boy's mother that we'll get him back. I promise we will."

They didn't actually get out the door until the family had given them food for the day. It was a brisk walk to the north of the village, where a burnt wooden gate gave testament to the bandits' attack last night. Beyond the gate was the forested wild of the Banner Mountains.

Stallion sprinted ahead to take point and scout the path. The rest of the party made their way after him. The course they were on was little more than a game trail running through the trees and up the slope. Flik concentrated on listening to the forest as he walked, though he trusted the elf to find any ambushes before they had to fight.

The woods were full of birdsong, and if it weren't for the fact that Flik was grimly expecting to fight at the end of the journey, he could imagine that he was taking a stroll in the forests back in Lorimar. He almost laughed when they startled a family of deer, who bounded away through the trees, white tails up. The day was hot, but not unpleasantly so, at least not yet. Likewise, the sky was clear save for a few puffy clouds.

Eventually Stallion guided them onto the trail of the bandits' wagon. They had turned east from the town, and now the ruts clearly led towards the south. The path began to descend, going down into a little valley between the hills. There was a rocky streambed at the bottom of the valley, but only a trickle of water ran through it in the middle of summer.

Beyond the stream was more climbing. The slope became quite steep, and in places it was clear that the bandits had had to manhandle the wagon to keep going. It was in the middle of the afternoon when Stallion came back again, announcing that he had found their stronghold.

"It's really quite impressive," the elf declared. "Words alone can't describe it. You'll have to see it for yourself." As Stallion led them up a sharp slope, the trees began to thin out, and Flik squinted as the light became brighter. It also became distinctly warmer as the shade receded. The elf put up one hand in warning as they reached the crest of the ridge. "You'd better get down. From here on there's very little cover." He bent over and carefully worked his way forward. They went parallel to the crest for a while, until they came across a jumble of large rocks. In the shadow of the boulders, Stallion pointed towards the bandits' camp.

Flik gaped. The fort sat at the bottom of a depression, with a single winding road as the only feasible approach. A wooden palisade arced around three sides of the structure. The fourth was backed against a sheer cliff wall that rose more than a hundred feet. Moreover, he could see that the cliff was manmade, not natural.

"Did they make that themselves?" Sheena whispered.

It was Freed who had the answer. "No. This is probably the site of an old quarry. During the time of the monarchy, they used the river to transport worked stone for the roads and fortifications."

"Pretty clever of the bandits to use it as a fort," Viktor observed. "Maybe we're not up against the usual scum."

"I don't care," Nanami said. "We're strong enough. Let's go down there and teach them a lesson."

Tir had walked to the very edge of the ridge. "Where are their lookouts, Stallion?"

"There posted on that cliff," Stallion answered. "If you had my eyes, you'd be able to see them…there…there…and there." He pointed to each location.

Tir paused to think for a moment. It was then that Flik realized that everyone, even Riou, was deferring to the bearer of the Soul Eater. He hadn't questioned it before because it was simply so natural. Tir McDohl was meant to lead.

"Stallion, would it be possible for you to loop around and take out those positions?" Tir asked.

"Not without raising an alarm. They're placed so that each is visible from the other two. Even I'm not fast enough to attack them all at once."

"No, I suppose not. But I don't want to charge into the fight when they know we're coming." He contemplated again. "We'll just have to go around and launch simultaneous attacks on those scouts. We've got enough people for it."

A clamor from the camp drew everyone's attention. Though Flik couldn't clearly see what was happening, he could tell that something had upset the bandits, something from within the fort. As he watched, one of the buildings started to flame.

"They're distracted now," Riou said.

Nanami nodded. "Let's attack!"

Tir McDohl smiled. "Sometimes you have to accept what destiny gives you. Let's go!"


	55. Chapter 55 Hearts of Her People

**Chapter 55 – Hearts of Her People**

They scrambled down a slope of dirt and loose rocks, making for the road to the bandits' fort. Flik felt a pebble bounce under the arch of his foot, but there was no time to take the boot off and fish the offending stone out. The slope bottomed out, then climbed back up the raised bank of the road. Suddenly they were on the hard-packed surface, sprinting towards the gates.

Stallion immediately raced out to the lead, his blue ponytail trailing behind him like a streamer. Next was Oulan, her powerful body glistening in the summer sun. Nanami, fueled by emotion, had the third place, and showed no signs of flagging as they drew near the fort. Flik found himself solidly in the pack, alongside Riou, Gremio, and Tir. He took a deep breath and picked up his pace, telling himself he wasn't racing anyone. Viktor was behind them. Flik could hear him chugging along. Sheena and Simone were last, though Flik didn't look to see how far back they were.

Horns blared on the cliff overhead. Flik guessed that meant the lookouts had spotted them. He drew his sword as the gates to the fort opened. Ahead, Stallion had stopped to string his bow. Oulan and Nanami began to slow.

Even before the gates were fully open, men spilled out. For a moment, Flik feared that the bandits would catch them all strung out, then he saw that the enemy wasn't interested in fighting them. These men were in flight, abandoning their arms and armor as they ran from something within the wooden walls. Many of them simply tumbled off the bank of the road, picked themselves up, and started straight up the ridgeline. The only bandits coming at Flik and the others were running blindly. One powerful punch from Oulan convinced those particular bandits to look where they were going.

When the first group of bandits had cleared beyond them, Flik could see that the gate stood unguarded. He heard fighting within, not to mention flames crackling. Tir started the charge again, lunging past Oulan, Nanami, and Stallion. Flik wiped the sweat out of his eyes and ran forward, marveling at the energy of youth.

Several wooden barracks stood past the gates. There were bandits here, but they were busy fighting among themselves, each man trying to get hold of anything of value before fleeing. Tir ignored these men and they in turn ignored the invaders. Beyond the barracks was a mustering field of packed dirt. Fallen men lay strewn over the ground, and in their midst was the cause of the disorder.

It was enough to make Tir stop, and Flik didn't blame him. The monster's form was like a caterpillar, save that it must've weighed somewhere on the order of several tons. Its flesh was green with purple and yellow spots and divided into pulsing segments. The tallest point of its arched back was at least a foot over Flik's head.

"Looks tough," Viktor observed. "What now?"

"Spread out," Tir commanded. "We'll see how much it likes the Soul Eater."

Nanami screamed, "Ko!" Then, before anyone could react, she charged directly at the monster. Flik's gaze swung from Nanami to her target. Ko was lying, unresponsive, beneath the pincers of the bug's maw.

Tir had been raising his hand to use his rune, but paused in mid chant. Nanami's rush put her much too close to the monster to use a rune with such wide-ranging effects. The monster seemed to look up as Nanami bore down on it, swinging her rod furiously. It bounced harmlessly off the bug's head, but she pivoted and brought it down again, and a third time.

Before Nanami could strike a fourth time, the caterpillar lunged at her, pincers working. Several men, including Flik, ran to rescue her, but Tir got there first, bashing the end of his staff onto the monster's head, momentarily driving it down into the turf. Riou grabbed Nanami from behind and pulled her out of danger. Oulan dove in from the side and snatched Ko, gathering the child into her arms.

The caterpillar wasn't subdued for long, nearly tripping Tir as it shifted its head back and forth to free itself from the pin. Gremio chopped at the head with his axe, but had to stagger back to avoid being bashed. Flik launched a bolt of lightning at the monster, to try and stun it. Though the electricity made several black scores on the thing's back, the attack failed to stop it.

An arrow flitted by Flik, then another. Stallion had launched both. They plunged into the soft hide of the caterpillar, but neither stopped it. Freed rushed at it from one side, stabbing with his blade. The monster's flank heaved in response, nearly crushing Freed under its bulk. Viktor, meanwhile, had circled around to the rear of the beast and now came at it with the Star Dragon Sword. The sword bit into the monster's side, carving off chunks of flesh, but his blade became stuck after the fourth strike.

As Viktor struggled to free his sword, the monster countered by emitting a spray of yellow droplets into the air. Several of these struck Flik, instantly numbing the exposed skin on his cheek. The numbness began to spread out from those points, but he was more worried about Viktor, who'd taken the brunt of the attack. Viktor, having pulled his weapon out, stumbled away from the caterpillar and collapsed down to his knees.

"Nanami!" Tir shouted. "Heal us now!"

"Yes, of course." She sounded as though she were still trying to catch her breath, but a cool mist of water replaced the deadening haze of the monster, bringing feeling back to Flik's face. He ran forward to grab Viktor and pull him away. Viktor recovered his feet after a few seconds.

Nanami's healing mist cleared away, leaving the battlefield in an uneasy stalemate. "Any ideas as to what we do now?" Flik asked.

"We've got Ko," Nanami answered. "Let's run."

"No," Tir replied. "I'm not leaving this thing alive and able to attack Banner Village." He raised his hand and the air around the caterpillar flashed into a vortex of red and black, distorting and ripping the monster. Flik shuddered, feeling the pull of the void. Goosebumps rose on the skin of his wrist.

But even the Soul Eater wasn't enough to bring it down. Jerking spasmodically and oozing from its wounds, the caterpillar lumbered towards Tir. A wall of light blazed into existence between it and Tir, driving it back. Riou, his right hand held aloft, walked forward, moving the wall as he did so. The caterpillar gave ground, swinging its head back and forth.

"Good work," Nanami cheered, clapping her hands. "We've got it on the run."

"I'm don't know how much longer I can maintain this," Riou responded and took a hasty breath.

"Young master, we should regroup and think of a better way to attack it," Gremio suggested.

"For goodness sake," a new voice rumbled. It was the Star Dragon Sword, shaking violently in Viktor's hands. "The weak point is the monstrosity's mouth. All you've got to do is stick your sword between those pincers and up into the brain. Here, I'll do it for you." The sword began to drag Viktor towards the caterpillar.

"No you don't!" Viktor reaffirmed his grip on his weapon and planted his feet firmly on the ground. "Thank you for sharing that vital piece of info after we started the fight, but even I'm not crazy enough to willingly throw myself into the mouth of an enemy."

Riou's wall of light winked away as he fell unsteadily to his knees. Oulan jumped in and grabbed him as the caterpillar started advancing again. Flik sent another bolt of lightning crashing into the creature to permit Oulan to get Riou safely back. The monster didn't even flinch as the electricity raced along its skin.

"We'll have to attack it together," Tir declared. "Distract it by attacking from several directions and then one of you with a sword…jam it into the thing's mouth."

"Are you asking for volunteers on that mission?" Flik asked. Still, somebody would have to do that. He brought his sword up.

"For friendship!" Simone cried, racing right past Flik. Before Flik could react, Sheena had also sped by, his father's long blade, Kirinji, drawn. Flik realized that they had just caught up to the fight and had no idea of what to do.

"Stop!" Tir ordered. This had the effect of causing Simone to trip over himself, followed quickly by Sheena tripping over Simone. Sheena's sword slipped out of his grip, spun gracefully in the air, and flew right through the caterpillar's pincers and into its mouth. The beast shuddered as the sword drove in nearly to the hilt.

Flik held his breath. Except for the distant sound of fire crackling, everything was quiet. "Is it…dead?" Nanami whispered.

Nobody was brave enough to go forward and find out. Eventually, Stallion fired another arrow into it and, when the caterpillar didn't react, this was sufficient proof for the exhausted warriors to claim victory. Sheena cautiously crept up to the corpse and worked at pulling his sword out. Flik joined the others around the still form of Ko.

"He's hardly breathing," Nanami said. "I don't think my water rune will be enough."

"What about you, Riou?" Tir asked. "Have you got enough energy left to try and heal him?"

"Maybe," Riou answered. His hands trembled as he placed them over Ko and invoked the Bright Shield. The Rune responded, and the boy's body glowed with warm light. When the light dissipated, his breathing was stronger, but he remained unconscious. "That's the best I can do," Riou gasped.

"He must've been poisoned earlier," Freed observed. "We need to get him to a specialist like Huan."

Flik almost shook his head. Going to Huan would mean turning around and abandoning the mission to Toran. He didn't want the boy to die. How could one weigh one life against the war and come up with the right answer? He looked to Riou, watching as the leader of the New State Army pondered impossible choices.

"Young master, what about doctor Liukan?" Gremio suddenly offered. "If we could get Ko to Toran, we might be able to enlist his aid."

"Can we keep him stable that long?" Oulan asked. "Any doctors in Toran are still a long way off."

"I'll do it," Nanami replied, biting her lower lip. "I won't let him die! Not here!"

"I'll help too," Riou offered.

Tir nodded. "Okay. Let's see if we can't make a litter for him. Stallion, find us a path to a border post. I know there's got to be one around here somewhere."

In fifteen minutes, they'd jury-rigged a littler for Ko. Viktor and Flik got the first shift bearing the child as they departed, this time taking the road as it wound out of the artificial valley. Once they were back in the forest, the going became markedly more difficult. They had only put a few miles between them and the fort when the approaching sunset finally forced them to stop.

Stallion had arrived to make a report. "My eyes spotted ships on the river, coming up from the south. There is some sort of way station along the bank of the river, probably about another day's march, seeing as we are burdened."

"Good," Tir said. "I don't think we're going to lose Ko, at least, not yet. My Rune is strangely quiet on the matter."

"That's a good sign, right?" Viktor asked.

"I…don't know," Tir answered. "All that means is that the Soul Eater isn't showing me Ko's death. That's all."

Flik looked from Tir over to Nanami, who was hovering over Ko and using her water rune to keep him from fading back towards death. Riou walked over to her to help, but she glared at him sharply, refusing to allow him to ease her burden. As Flik watched, he thought he saw desperation reflecting in her eyes. For just a moment, he was aware that her whole demeanor appeared brittle, but she shook her head and seemed to recover her strength.

They took the watch by pairs. Viktor and Flik, having carried Ko thus far, drew the last watch of the night. As Flik stretched out to rest, he focused on Nanami sitting by Ko, her face set in concentration. Then he rolled over and closed his eyes. When Freed woke him to change the watch, Nanami was still there.

"Has she slept at all?" Flik whispered to Freed.

"I don't know. She was awake when I began my watch."

Viktor had also noticed Nanami. He was less circumspect than Flik about voicing his opinions, though. He walked over to her and asked, "Why don't you get some rest, Nanami? Flik and I can watch Ko for the rest of the night."

"No!" Her vehemence startled Flik. "No, he might slip away while I'm resting. I've got to do it. I have to be on guard at all times. I would never forgive myself if he died because of my weakness." Flik thought her eyes moved slightly, to look at her brother, but it might've been a trick of the firelight.

Viktor shrugged. "Have it your way." He and Flik took up positions at opposite ends of the camp. Under normal circumstances, they might've conversed quietly, but Nanami's presence made that impossible. Instead, Flik spent the watch peering into the southern trees, trying to listen for any suspicious noises over the sound of the rushing river. The Blue Moon, which was over to the west, cast its light eerily into the breaks in the leaves.

Eventually the sun heralded the beginning of the new day, and the travelers quickly broke camp. Once again Stallion disappeared into the foliage ahead of them, while Sheena and Freed were recruited to carry the litter. The trek was downhill this day, heading back towards the Dunan River. Flik could hear the water crashing over a series of falls.

They'd not gone too far before Nanami suddenly staggered and fainted, rolling down the slope before anyone could stop her. Riou immediately went after her, half running and half sliding to catch up. Flik also started down the hill, along with Viktor, Tir, and Gremio. Nanami had come to rest against the trunk of a tree and wasn't moving.

Riou shook his sister, panic in his voice. "Nanami, hey, Nanami, wake up! What's wrong?" He placed his hand on her forehead, and the Bright Shield Rune began to shine.

Before he could complete the chant, Gremio reached out to pull his hand away. "She is not injured, so there is nothing your Rune can do. She is merely exhausted. What she needs is rest."

Oulan was called upon to carry Nanami. The redhead did this without complaint, effortlessly cradling Nanami in her muscular arms. Riou remained with Oulan as the march continued, constantly looking at his sister's face. Several times the bodyguard had to remind Riou to keep his eyes on the path, lest he walk into any trees.

Around noon, the course they were on led them to the banks of the Dunan River. Stallion was waiting for them at a clearing. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw Nanami, but he recovered himself and said, "The border post is still many hours south of here. You may want to stop and eat, in order to recover your strength." Tir nodded.

As they sat down to eat, Nanami finally came awake. "What happened?" she asked wearily. "Is Ko all right?"

She tried to sit up, only to be embraced fiercely by Riou. "You suddenly fell," he said. "You went right down a hill and didn't move. I thought you'd been injured somehow."

Nanami laughed weakly. "Silly brother, I can't get injured. I've got to keep looking after everyone."

"You won't be looking after anyone if you don't get enough rest," Tir declared. "I should've ordered you to sleep last night."

Flik decided that she showed remarkable sense in looking abashed. She didn't even protest when Oulan picked her up when they started off again. In this manner they journeyed south along the bank of the river until the sun was off in the west. By that time, Flik was soaked with sweat. It had been another hot day, and he'd taken his turns carrying Ko's litter.

Stallion emerged from out of the forest with a warning. "There's a post with Toran border guards half a mile south of here. I spotted their leader. It's Varkas."

Flik recalled the bandit who'd joined the Liberation Army during the war two years ago. Varkas was a proud man who'd led his brigands with the discipline of a general.

"Let's press on," Tir said. "Riou, Sheena, when we get there, you'll have to do the talking. I'd still rather not announce my presence, not unless I have to." He and Gremio pulled out long, hooded cloaks and put them on. They did a good job hiding their faces, but Flik knew they'd also be conspicuous. On the other hand, given the crowd they were travelling with, maybe they'd simply be mistaken for a pair of servants.

The forest along the riverbank gave way to another cleared area. Inevitably there was a small tent village around the post, filled with refugees who could go no further. As they walked towards the guardhouse, Flik could hear Sheena muttering to himself.

When they got to the guardhouse itself, Flik recognized Varkas immediately. His green turban, black breastplate, and red cape were all striking, but what really set him apart was the stern set to his face. Even his brown mustache seemed to be frowning in disapproval.

"Is that you, Sheena? Are you returning to beg your father for more money, or perhaps you've finally grown tired of the wandering life?"

Sheena marched straight forward to meet Varkas' glare. "My father needs to play a more active role in the war to the north. The least he can do is let these refugees into Toran. In fact, I order it. Varkas, open the gates."

Varkas shook his head. "Sorry, kid, but throwing a tantrum isn't going to get you anything. Your dad would certainly agree with me on that one."

"A…tantrum?" Sheena shouted. "I'll show you a tantrum!"

"That's enough," Riou interjected. "Sheena, focus on what we need to do."

Varkas' eyes shifted over towards Riou at the sound of his voice. Then he looked up and noted Viktor, Flik, and Stallion. "So, there's more to this than simply a lazy son trying to return home. Would one of you care to explain?"

"I'm Riou, leader of the New State Army, fighting against Highland. I wish to enter into negotiations with the Toran Republic for the purpose of forging an alliance."

"Also, we need to get a doctor for this injured boy," Nanami added.

Varkas pondered the news, eventually looking to Viktor and Flik. "You two, you're men of honor. You're serving under him?"

"To the end," Viktor replied. Flik nodded.

"The President has sent word; any delegation from the New State Army is to be escorted directly to Gregminster. While you are in the Toran Republic, you must remain in my custody. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes," Riou said.

"Good." Varkas motioned to the guards at the gate. "Let's get them all in here. We can have the unit surgeon look at the boy and the rest of you can get some food and rest. I'll have one of the boats stand by to take us all down the river in the morning."

They passed into the guardhouse without difficulty. Gremio and Tir, still in their hooded cloaks, lifted Ko's litter and were admitted without any fuss. The interior of the barracks was extremely orderly. Soldiers quickly relived Gremio and Tir of the litter and rushed the boy off to the infirmary. Nanami followed them in, refusing to let Ko out of her sight.

For the rest, Varkas showed them to the guest rooms. Tir and Gremio disappeared into one. Viktor and Flik decided to eat rather than rest. Varkas ate with them, and peppered them with questions about their activities after the fall of Gregminster. Then he turned to the question of Riou.

"The boy seems to have some mettle in him. He took control of Sheena quickly enough, though that isn't too difficult. But, does he have the will to see this through to the end? President Lepant's not going to commit forces if he doesn't think Riou can finish the war."

"We're doing well enough," Viktor countered. "Riou's held his own so far."

"Not so well that you don't need more help. Otherwise, why would you be here?" Varkas' eyes narrowed. "Reports from up the river say that you haven't met Luca Blight in battle yet. How does Riou compare to the new king of Highland?"

Neither Viktor nor Flik answered immediately. Flik knew that there was no physical comparison. Likewise, Riou probably didn't have Luca's skill in leading men in battle. "It's hard to explain our faith in Riou," Flik said. "He cares for his people and listens to their advice. He's got the advantage on Luca there."

Varkas swallowed a piece of bread that he'd been chewing. "Let me tell you this. A lot of people in the Republic don't like Jowston. The City-States have always been viewed as divided, treacherous, and feckless from our side of the border. On the other hand, many people admire Highland greatly- for its military tradition, for its legacy of valorous generals, and for its centralized government. I myself have heard enough about Luca Blight to know that he must be stopped, but the further south you go, the fewer people you'll find who share my view."

Flik was aghast. "Are you saying Lepant won't support him?"

"I'm certain the President will lend Riou as much support- moral and physical- as he is able. However, the age of the Empire is past. If Riou truly wishes aid from the Republic, he must win the hearts of her people."

Viktor suddenly laughed. "If that's all he has to do, then we'll have all the help we need. I have faith in him."

"He's won plenty of other people to his side," Flik noted. "I think he'll do the same here."

Varkas stared at the two of them, a gaze that was hard and cold. Flik knew the former bandit wasn't afraid of death. He'd once been tried, condemned, and then rescued in the process of the sentence being carried out. Thus, Flik was surprised when Varkas replied, "He'd better. For all of our sakes, he'd better. If Luca Blight isn't stopped soon, he'll be the end of everything the Liberation Army wanted to build."


	56. Chapter 56 To Accept an Invitation

**Chapter 56 – To Accept an Invitation**

_In Solis 460, Firesdei, the 20th of Ulya:_

_Dear Diary,_

_We have just departed from the floating fortress of Shasarazade and are now heading up the Tolna Canal towards Gregminster. Being on this lake brings back memories of the Liberation War. Yesterday Viktor and I tried to spot the old headquarters, but the haze in the air made that impossible. There are also many more ships on the lake than I've ever seen. Two years of peace have helped the Republic beyond measure._

_Ko remains unconscious, and Nanami continues to look after him. She's been very temperamental of late, and that worries me. I think that the stress of this war may be getting to her. But who do I talk to about this? I don't think Nanami would like it if I confronted her. Nor do I want to add to Riou's problems by bringing it up with him. Viktor?_

_Not a chance._

_Perhaps her mood will change for the better once we arrive in Gregminster later this afternoon. As for myself, I wonder what I'll feel when I see the city again._

Flik's head came up at the sound of footsteps approaching him on the deck. He snapped his diary shut just as Viktor asked, "So, what're you writing? I hope you're not saying anything bad about me."

Getting up from his sitting position, Flik stretched before turning to face his friend. "I'm writing down my thoughts, that's all. It helps me think about things."

Viktor walked up to the railing of the ship, squinting off into the distance. "You shouldn't share your thoughts with something that can't talk back. Why not speak with a friend?"

Flik joined him at the rail. Viktor's eyes were trained on a group of three gul-horses frolicking in the shallows at the water's edge. They were slightly larger than horses, scaled like lizards, stood on two legs, and had long tails for counterbalance. Though these three were wild, Flik had seen gul-horses trained for war. He could remember the awesome spectacle of several thousand of them, mail glittering in the sun, bearing down on the Liberation Army. Even now, as the three of them whipped up sprays of water with their tails in play, they looked formidable.

"Now that brings back memories," Viktor said. He suddenly began fanning himself. "I'd forgotten how bad the air is in the south. How can you stand it?"

Flik raised an eyebrow. "It's just as hot back north. It is summer, after all."

"Yeah, but back north it's never this humid. I feel like I'm cooking in my own juices."

"Really?" Flik laughed. "But we've had the ocean breeze for at least an hour. It'll be a little cooler once we get to Gregminster."

"I must be getting old," Viktor groused. "I don't remember the heat bothering me this much two years ago."

"If I remember correctly, you complained constantly."

"Come to think of it, you're right. The other thing I disliked was all those thunderstorms. Looks like we'll probably have another one today."

Flik glanced at the skies to the south. Giant, anvil shaped clouds were already gathering over the lake. There'd been afternoon storms every day since they'd departed from the border station. He shrugged. "Maybe they'll hold off until we're in Gregminster."

The clouds crept ominously northward as the day went on, and, when the ship finally made berth at an impressive complex of docks and warehouses, the sky was dark with impending precipitation. As everyone gathered on the deck, Nanami perused the sprawling port and said, "This doesn't look like the capital of a great nation. Where are all the palaces?"

"This is actually the port for Gregminster," Flik explained. "The city itself lies several miles away from the canal."

"It seems my father had the decency to send us an escort, at least," Sheena declared. He pointed to a group of carriages and horsemen waiting alongside the berth. "I didn't fancy walking home through the rain."

The commander of the detachment, distinguished by the enormous red plume on his helmet, bowed to the new arrivals and announced, "Welcome, representatives from Jowston. His Excellency, President Lepant, desires that you be conveyed directly to the Executive Palace for an immediate audience. Uh…which one of you is Riou?"

Before Varkas could point him out, Riou strode down the gangplank. "I am Riou. I accept President Lepant's offer."

While Riou was speaking, Tir, in his hooded cloak, walked up beside Viktor and Flik. "I think he'll be all right," Tir said quietly. "If he can maintain that calm air in the capital, he won't have any problems winning over Lepant. I'm almost sorry that I'll have to miss the performance."

"You're not coming with us?" Viktor asked.

"And declare myself right in front of the President? That'd probably bring down the government." Tir shook his head. "No, we'll make our own way home. Still, I'd like to talk with Riou some more. I want to talk with all of you. When you get the chance, come over to the mansion and have dinner with us. I'll even get Gremio to cook it."

"If that's the deal, I'll take all my meals over at your place," Viktor answered.

"We'll be there," Flik replied. "I don't know how many formal dinners at the palace I can stand."

"Make sure you bring Riou and Nanami…and anyone else you can too," Tir replied. For a moment, his face looked extremely youthful, and Flik could imagine that he was speaking with a normal boy of eighteen years. "There are so many things I want to talk about and so little time."

Gremio approached and put his hand on Tir's shoulder. "I know, young master, but we have to let them go for now." He gestured towards the carriages. Riou and Nanami were climbing into one, while the escort captain was looking pointedly towards the four stragglers.

"Later, then," Tir whispered. "Promise me you'll come by later."

"We will," Flik replied. Then he and Viktor walked over to the same carriage Riou and Nanami had entered. Flik looked back once to see Gremio and Tir watching at the foot of the gangplank. Thunder rumbled overhead, causing Flik's rune to stir. He grimaced in discomfort and climbed up into the vehicle. It was underway even before he took his seat.

The interior of the carriage was crowded and warm. Ko had been placed in the middle of the two sets of seats, and Nanami was leaning over him, her water rune casting a pale light in the interior. Riou sat back in the seat next to his sister and fidgeted intermittently. Flik sat down next to Viktor on the other seat. The curtains had been drawn tight, blocking any view of the city. A louder crash of thunder penetrated inside, followed immediately by the downpour.

No one said anything for a while. Flik was distracted by the storm and discomforted by the intense look on Nanami's face. He glanced at Viktor and found him to be subdued too. He wondered if the past was weighing on Viktor.

The carriage came to a halt momentarily, and, though Flik didn't look to confirm, he knew they'd arrived at one of the many gates into Gregminster proper. The rain paused as they passed under the gatehouse, then returned with equal vigor on the other side. He could hear the wheels clattering on the cobbled city streets.

Suddenly, Riou gasped sharply, clutching at his right hand. Nanami squeaked as he lurched out of his seat, but Viktor caught him before he could fall to the floor. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Taking a rasping breath, Riou's answer came out almost at a hiss. "I…can see it burning. The Rune…it's showing me this city in flames." His eyes were open as wide as they could go, his forehead creased by the effort.

Flik shuddered, chilled by the words. "Are you sure?"

"A golden angel…reflects the fire. It is melting in the heat. The city is destroyed." Riou spasmed and went limp, collapsing against Viktor's arms.

"Riou?" Nanami shrieked, reaching for her brother. "Riou!"  
He coughed, took a deep breath, and seemed to recover his bearings. "I'm all right," he said weakly.

"Is that…the future?" Flik asked. He realized that the thought of Gregminster's destruction had shaken him to the heart. During the Liberation War, they'd taken special pains to make sure the city wasn't unduly harmed during the fighting. Even then, the Imperial Palace had sustained quite a bit of damage in the aftermath of the battle. In Flik's head, the rain crashing down on the roof of the carriage took on the eerie roar of fire.

"I don't know," Riou replied. "The Rune is always showing me things falling to pieces." He shook his head. "I hate it…I don't want to see everything ending that way, but sometimes, that vision feels more like reality than the waking world."

"I don't think that has to be the ending," Viktor said. "For many years, I never thought that anyone would live in North Window ever again. Now look at it; it's a thriving city. Who made that possible, but you, Riou? It was your choice to lead, and gather us, and make a new beginning where there'd only been desolation before. Whatever that Rune is showing you, it doesn't yet exist for us. This does." He gestured towards the window and the city beyond, veiled by the curtains. "We've come here to build an alliance, and we need you to do it."

Riou smiled, relaxing back into his seat. "Thank you, Viktor. I don't think I'd be able to do this without all of your support."

Now that the tension was fading, Flik also leaned back. "We're all here for you, Riou. You don't have to go through this alone. Don't hesitate to share your burdens with us."

The sound of the wheels slowed, and Viktor took a peek out of the curtains. "I think we've arrived," he declared. "Though I can't see much in this downpour."

The carriage rolled into a roofed garage, cutting the rain off. After a moment, they came to a complete halt. Riou was up and had opened the door before the footman could assist him. Flik followed him out and then turned around to help Viktor get Ko out. A pair of guards with a litter jogged over to accept the injured boy.

There was also a middle-aged steward waiting for the delegation. He bowed formally and said, "Greetings, Lord Riou, Lord Yamamoto, Lord Verdricci, Sirs Viktor and Flik, and Master Sheena. President Lepant wishes to meet with you immediately. If you would follow me." He turned around and started walking towards a door leading out of the garage. Flik took the formal greeting in stride. It was obvious that Varkas had sent a messenger ahead of them.

"They certainly do things efficiently in Toran," Nanami whispered.

"Hardly," Sheena snapped. "Father should've been here to greet me personally. I bet he'll make us cool our heels just to show you how important he is."

The steward led them out into the entrance hall of the palace. The last time Flik had been in the palace had been at the end of the Liberation War. He'd been too busy fighting to really look at the décor. Now he found his breath taken away by what he saw. The floors shown of polished red marble. There were beautiful paintings on the walls and porcelain vases atop marble stands. Elaborate candelabras, each as tall as a person, lined the walls, filling every chamber with light. In one side room, he thought he saw a representation of Tir's clothing, but the steward swept past without halting.

They climbed a set of stairs to the second floor. The steward stopped by a door at the turning of the hall. "If you gentlemen and ladies would kindly wait here, one of the Presidential Guards will summon you for the audience."

The waiting room wasn't large, but there were plush sofas to sit down on, and a bookcase filled with books on one wall. Flik walked over to the bookcase and started examining the titles. As expected, most of them were official histories of the Scarlet Moon Empire. He decided against taking one of them to read and went over to sit next to Viktor on one of the sofas.

Shortly, only Freed and Sheena were standing. Sheena was by the door, tapping his foot impatiently. Freed stood in the center of the room, fidgeting with his glasses. "I never thought I'd ever go to the Scarlet Moon Empire." He coughed. "I mean, the Toran Republic, like this. I'm a little nervous. I always thought we'd be enemies."

"Don't worry about it," Riou answered. "Everything's going to go perfectly."

Sheena pounded on the door, drawing everyone's attention. "Ugh…the nerve of that man! To think he'd keep me, his own son, waiting like this. I ought to walk right up to him and give him a piece of my mind."

Freed became even more embarrassed by Sheena's antics. "I…uh…I wonder if there's time for me to find a bathroom?"

The door suddenly opened on Sheena's face, causing him to stumble backwards. A soldier walked into the room. "His Excellency the President is ready to meet with you."

"About time," Sheena muttered, pushing his way past the soldier.

"Let's go," Riou said. The soldier took them down to the end of the hall, which opened up into a large antechamber. Beyond the gilded doors at the far end was the audience hall. Flik paused to study the guards who had the duty of defending the president. These were hard men, veterans of the Liberation War, many bearing scars on their faces. One man even had a hook in place of his left hand.

Then the great doors were swinging open, and a herald was announcing their names. Sheena entered first, followed by Riou, Freed, and Nanami. Viktor and Flik marched in the back. To one side of Flik was a row of civil ministers, on the other, military captains.

Flik scanned the room, picking out familiar faces. At the head of the ministers, in a yellow robe and blue hat, was Tesla, who'd been a scrivener before the war had pulled him up. Tesla still looked as though he were worried the authorities were going to arrest him at any moment. To either side of the presidential chair were Alen and Grenseal, the two of them former officers under Teo McDohl, who ordered them to serve Tir as his dying wish. The former had a serious expression on his face, but the latter had just a hint of a smile.

Sheena stalked right towards the presidential chair, heedless of propriety. "What's the meaning of this, Father? I've come all the way from Jowston, and you can't even take time out to greet me? And here I've done you a big favor, bringing the leader of the New State Army to see you. He's here to save your-"

"Silence, Sheena!" President Lepant rose out of his chair, towering over his son. Before the Liberation War, he'd been a merchant in the city of Kouan, but he was also a powerful warrior. His physique was evident even in a formal dress coat and pants. Just as during the war, he wore his red hair in a ponytail, and his mustache bristled. Sheena's righteous indignation quailed in the face of his father's anger.

"What makes you think you're deserving of any welcome? What have you done with yourself to merit any acclaim?"

Sheena gulped. "Well, I did bring Lord Riou."

"We will discuss your…travels later, Sheena. Now then, you will not speak again unless I ask your opinion. Do I make myself clear?" Sheena nodded. Lepant's glare turned from his son to the rest of the delegation. For a moment everyone was cowed, but Riou stepped forward, breaking the silence.

"Thank you for meeting with us, President Lepant. Before we begin, I'd like to ask that the boy, Ko, get treated as quickly as possible."

Lepant nodded to himself, his expression becoming less stern. "Do not worry. I received Varkas' message on that matter and have summoned Doctor Liukan. If anyone can save the boy, he will be able to. Meanwhile, as President of the Republic of Toran, allow me to formally welcome you, Lord Riou. What purpose has brought you to Gregminster?" Something in his eyes told Flik that he already knew the reason for Riou's visit.

Riou took a hasty breath. "I wish to negotiate an alliance with the Toran Republic, for the purpose of defeating Luca Blight, who has invaded Jowston."

Lepant brought one hand up to his chin and rubbed it. "Your words are fine, Lord Riou, but an alliance is a difficult thing to create. There must be some measure of trust, if not friendship, between the parties. However, our two nations have often been bitter enemies. Not two years ago, we had to repulse the armies of South Window and Tinto, who'd invaded in the wake of our civil war."

He looked from Riou to Freed. "Lord Yamamoto, you come from South Window, right? Many people in the Republic hate the people of South Window, as we have fought for generations. No doubt, many people in South Window have a similar feeling towards the Republic. How do you suppose we overcome that hatred?"

Freed shifted at Lepant's question. "It is true that I have considered the Scarlet Moon Empire my enemy. I may even have hated your country. But what was ever gained by that hatred? Were either of our lands made nobler because of it? I have come to understand that hatred is a thing of despair that leads only to destruction. There is no hope in it, and I couldn't live without hope." Meeting Lepant's eyes, Freed continued, "For the sake of hope, for the sake of the citizens of Jowston, I ask that the Toran Republic put aside its hatred. I know that there is no compensation for all the damage that we have done to each other over the years, but I would do anything to give hope to the people of Jowston. That wish may not be much to build an alliance on, but I will pursue it with all of my strength, all of my life."

"Peace, Lord Yamamoto." Lepant put up a hand. "Your words do credit to both you and Lord Riou." His attention returned to Riou. "I have a very simple question to ask you, Lord Riou. I have learned that you are originally from Kyaro, in Highland. Why have you chosen to fight against your home country?"

Riou's voice was steady as he answered Lepant. "Before I became leader of the New State Army, I heard a story about my father and Han Cunningham of Highland. They worked so hard to bring peace to Jowston and Highland, but their efforts were in vain. Now Luca Blight has invaded Jowston, bringing destruction wherever his armies march. I watched him burn Ryube and saw the aftermath at Toto. But more than that, I was there when he slaughtered the Unicorn Brigade, children of Highland, as the pretext for war. I'm fighting not against Highland, but against Luca Blight. I'm fighting to put an end to this conflict, to build the peace that my father and Han Cunningham were not able to achieve." Riou paused, as if considering his next words. "Perhaps I sound naïve when I say this, but I'm not fighting for power or glory or rule. If I can't bring a lasting peace to the people of both Jowston and Highland when this war is finished, then all of my fighting will be wasted."

Flik watched as Lepant broke eye contact with Riou, his eyes taking on a distant look. Finally, a small smile appeared on the President's face. "Now I see why Viktor and Flik put so much trust in you. Lord Riou, you remind me very much of the young man who led the Liberation Army, the young man who, in all rights, should occupy this very chair. He had the same passion that you have, and he became hope for all of us." Lepant's smile faded as he looked back at Riou. "He suffered much to see that hope to completion. Perhaps, with our aid, you will not have to suffer as he did."

"You mean you'll accept our alliance?" Freed asked.

"Spend the night here," Lepant said. "Tomorrow we will get down to the details of what the Toran Republic can offer."

An idea suddenly came to Flik. He cleared his throat and said, "With your permission, President, I'd like Riou to stay somewhere other than the palace tonight." Several people, among them Viktor and Riou, turned to look at Flik questioningly. Flik winked in Viktor's direction.

In an instant, Viktor got what Flik was thinking about. "Yes, there's a place Riou ought to see first."

Lepant stared at the two of them. "What place is this? You two have something tricky up your sleeves, whatever this is about. But…I don't suppose you're planning on spiriting him away after having gone through all that trouble to get him here." He smiled again. "Lord Riou, I don't know what these two rogues are plotting, but it is undoubtedly for your own benefit to go with them. Just have him back before noon."

"Of course," Flik replied. "We're not that unreliable."

They took their leave of the president, Viktor and Flik in the lead, and hurried back through the halls and down to the entrance. As they reached the doors leading out of the palace, Nanami managed to protest, "Where are we going? I don't want to go out into the rain."

"It's not raining any more," Flik said. "Summer storms in Gregminster are like that, intense one minute and finished the next. Besides, the place we're going to visit is very important."

"He's right," Viktor added. "It'll be much better than staying in some stuffy palace."

Nanami didn't look convinced. "I wanted to eat some good food finally, and sleep on a real bed."

"I assure you, the place we're going to has both in good supply," Flik answered. They walked out of the palace, into a long courtyard bordered by gardens and orchards. As Flik had said, the storm was winding down. Small falls of water were cascading off the roof of the palace and the trees surrounding it, but nothing was coming from the clouds overhead. Twilight made the courtyard dim, illuminated only by distant flashes of lightning from the clouds.

Viktor and Flik hurried the party down the central path of the courtyard, over a wide, stone bridge, and out into the city proper. Even in the limited light, the white walls of the buildings appeared to gleam. The broad path of the courtyard widened out into the central street running through the city. After a few minutes of walking, the street opened up onto a wide plaza. Flik heard Riou and Nanami gasp as they got a good view of it.

In the center of the plaza was a large, circular, reflecting pool, and in the middle of that, dominating the whole area, was a gigantic, golden statue of a winged angel. In her left arm she carried a golden amphora from which water continuously splashed out into the pool.

"How beautiful," Nanami murmured.

Flik shook his head. "I don't remember the first time I saw it. I think that many of the people who live here hardly notice it when they walk through this plaza."

"They don't notice something this beautiful?" Riou asked.

"I guess they take it for granted," Flik replied. "Funny, even I did, when I was here with Odessa. Good things are like that sometimes. If you're not careful, you forget their value and then they slip away from you."

Viktor walked up beside Flik. "That's a great speech and all, but you're not stalling for time, are you? You sure you remember the way?"

"Of course I do!" Flik glanced at each of the side streets, trying to get his bearings. "This way." He turned towards a street on the left, headed by a domed cathedral of white marble. Tall, spindle towers surrounded the central dome, connected to it by lattice buttresses.

They walked past this, down a street containing magnificent mansions. Most of these were set back from the road, surrounded by high fences of white stone. However, one of them stood right on the edge of the road, without any barriers. Light streamed out from the first floor windows and, as Flik approached, he could hear sounds of good cheer from within.

"Pretty good," Viktor said under his breath. "You found it on the first try."

"Hey, I was up and down this street a lot back in the day," Flik responded.

"Yeah, but there was only one mansion that really held your interest in those days."

There was no counter to that, as it was true. Instead, Flik walked up to the red doors and banged the iron knocker. The voices went quiet, and he heard a woman say, "I'll see who that is." The door opened and Flik found himself confronted by a woman with brown hair. It took a moment for him to recognize her as Cleo. She was no longer wearing the armor she'd carried during the Liberation War, dressing instead in a simple red blouse and hunter green pants. Her hair had also grown out in the intervening two years. She was, however, holding one of her daggers in her free hand.

Pahn, in a red tunic, was standing unobtrusively to one side of her- that is, if a man of his size could be said to be unobtrusive. He was just as large and muscle-bound as Viktor, and the scowl on his face suggested he was ready to cave in the head of anyone who intruded too far into the McDohl mansion.

Luckily for Flik, Cleo recognized him. "Is that you, Flik? And Viktor too? My, what a crowd of people you've brought with you." She smiled and Pahn relaxed at her tone.

"We're here to accept an invitation," Flik replied. "Though, if you're not ready, we could always call on you another night."

One of the interior doors burst open and Tir McDohl bounded into the room. "I didn't think Lepant would let you go this soon, but never mind. Of course you're welcome here. I'll just have to inform Gremio that he's cooking for company. Come in, we'll find room for all of you."

As Flik stepped forward into the house, he remarked to himself that he'd only once before seen Tir McDohl as happy as he was now.


	57. Chapter 57 Formalities

**Chapter 57 – Formalities**

Much to Flik's surprise, the staff of the McDohl mansion didn't complain in the least that they'd have to prepare several guest bedrooms for service on short notice. In fact, when he attempted to set the sheets for his own bed, Cleo politely shooed him away and took over the duty herself. Furthermore, Nanami and Oulan shot him dirty looks when he tried to stick around and help, then promptly set about aiding Cleo. Flik shrugged his shoulders in helpless resignation.

Pahn had been watching this display from the door, chuckling. "Women are strange that way. Cleo will go to all that trouble just to set your room up, but doesn't even care to keep mine clean while I'm away."

Cleo looked up from tucking in the sheets. "Your room is a sty, Pahn. Besides, you're away for months on end. I'm not going to clean up for someone who doesn't appreciate it."

"I like my room the way it is," Pahn countered. "I know where everything is."

Flik abandoned the conversation, making his way back downstairs to find the sitting room where Tir and the others were. As he entered, Simone was speaking.

"I regret that we have not had the chance to meet before. My father was on such bad terms with yours, but I do hope that you'll put all that behind us. Consider the house of Verdricci at your service."

Talk about his father appeared to make Tir uncomfortable. He waved his hand dismissively, sitting forward in an armchair. "It's no problem, Lord Verdricci. What happened in the past should stay there. Anyway, I'm not about to reenter politics in the Republic, so you don't need to swear service to me."

Riou, Freed, Viktor, and Stallion were also in the room, seated at various chairs. Flik noted that Viktor looked bored with the conversation. Simone had paused to think of a response and now spoke as Flik crossed the room to an empty chair. "Well, I guess I've already made a commitment to Lord Riou, so I must honor that first. Nevertheless, the house of Verdricci stands in alliance with you, Lord McDohl."

That title discomforted Tir noticeably, but he recovered and turned to Riou. "How about it? How did your meeting with Lepant go?"

"I think it went well," Riou answered. "He says we'll talk about specifics tomorrow."

Tir nodded. "I see. Then let's not talk about wars tonight. Instead, let me show you around the house. All of you, in fact. I don't think any of you have been inside here."

Viktor got up from his chair. "I'm game."

Tir led them from room to room, explaining a little of the history of the McDohl family as he did so. To Flik, the atmosphere of the interior was at once similar and strikingly different from the Silverberg manor. There was the same feeling of antiquity, but it wasn't nearly as oppressive. Then again, this house had nothing like the hall of Silverberg portraits. Flik had never felt entirely comfortable with generations of strategists staring down at him.

They were passing the bedrooms on the second floor when Nanami interrupted Tir's commentary. "Wait! Did you say that someone died in that room?"

"Yes. It was my great-grandmother."

Nanami peered dubiously into the room. "Doesn't that creep you out? Did anyone die in my room?"

Tir looked thoughtful as he considered the question. "Well, people have been living in this house for more than two hundred years, so it wouldn't surprise me if there was a death for every room."

Flik was tempted to bring up Nanami's last encounter with a ghost, but kept his mouth shut. Nanami paled and grabbed Riou's arm fiercely. "Well, if there are any ghosts, my brother will beat them off." Riou frowned.

Eventually they came to the last door of the hall. Tir hesitated and finally said, "This was my room. I guess that's the end of the tour."

"Just a minute," Viktor declared. "Let's see the inside."

"No way," Tir replied. "I haven't been in there since I fled during the war. Who knows how much dust is covering everything?"

"All the more reason to find out," Viktor answered. "Come on, I want to see where the leader of the Liberation Army grew up."

"I shouldn't have said anything." He grabbed the doorknob. "Well, here you go."

The room was smaller than Flik thought it would be. He knew that Tir didn't act like a pampered noble, but some part of Flik expected that the room would reflect Tir's wealth. Instead, beyond the door was a modest room with a few dressers, a desk, mirror, window, and bed. A small book lay on the desk, open, and covered in dust.

Flik took one step in the book's direction before Tir began shooing them out of the room. "Okay, you've seen enough. Let's go check on Gremio, see how dinner's coming along."

Despite Tir's pestering, Gremio had dinner served before too long. The dining room was on the second floor. When Flik walked in, he could smell Gremio's savory stew along with freshly baked rolls. Flik took one of the chairs at the center of the table, closest to the food. It was no surprise when Pahn and Viktor sat down on either side of him.

Tir, on the other hand, seemed to waver over which place to take, until Gremio said, "Young master, you should sit there." He pointed to a large chair almost directly across from Flik.

Tir shook his head. "That's my father's," he said quietly.

"It is yours now, young master. You are the head of the family."

Frowning, Tir took his place at the table, but his sour mood didn't last long at the sight of Gremio's cooking. "This looks great!" He began to reach for the stew ladle.

Gremio cleared his throat. "Young master, how about a grace?"

Again Tir frowned. "Oh. My father usually said- no, I understand." He closed his eyes and bowed his head, searching for the proper words. Flik followed suit. Eventually Tir said, "In the name of the Twenty-Seven True Runes, let us give thanks for the blessings of this table, and the blessings of good company." There was a pause before he added. "Strange, praying to something that's attached to my hand. I wonder what it thinks of that. Never mind, let's eat."

Viktor laughed as Flik opened his eyes. "I've got one of the more talkative ones on my sword. How about it, Star Dragon Sword, what do you think about your god-hood?" The sword, to Flik's relief, remained silent.

Though the stew was a simple mixture of beef, potatoes, and carrots, it was one of the best that Flik had ever had. Much of the conversation during the meal revolved around praising Gremio's cooking skills, until he finally blushed and asked that they stop. Afterwards, the discussion remained on safe grounds. Tir asked Cleo and Pahn what they had been up to in his absence. Simone spoke about the gossip that passed among the nobles, though he admitted that his stay in Radat had rendered him out-of-date.

Because dinner had started late, Flik retired to his room when the meal was done. As he closed the door, he could almost imagine that he was in a different mansion, in a different time. He shook the feeling from his head, prepared for bed, and finally blew out his candle. His rest that night was troubled, interrupted several times as he woke up and tried to figure out where he was. At one point, he leapt out of bed to check on the guard, only to remember that he wasn't in the Silverberg mansion and there was no guard.

He was still tired when the sun's rays began to pour in from the east-facing window. Groaning, Flik turned over and tried to get some more rest. He could hear the other inhabitants of the house getting up and walking about. Before long, one set of footsteps approached his door, followed by thunderous knocking.

"Yo, Flik, time to get going!" Viktor shouted. "They're serving breakfast, and I'm planning to eat your portion if you're not there when it's served." Knowing the threat was real, Flik sat up as Viktor opened the door and walked in. "You don't look very awake," Viktor opined. "Maybe you'd better sit today out and rest up. I can help Riou by myself."

"I'm up, I'm up," Flik replied. "Just give me a moment to dress and get my hair in order." He ran one hand over his head, feeling his hair sticking out in various directions. "And don't you dare touch my breakfast!"

Breakfast was a less formal affair than dinner. Flik trooped down to the kitchen to find Gremio cooking up skillets full of omelets stuffed with cheese, mushrooms, and bacon. As he searched for a chair, he heard Simone speaking with Riou. "Never fear, dear friend. While you are up at the castle negotiating with the President, I shall be out canvassing my friends in Gregminster. Between us, there'll be so much pressure on the Senate that they'll have to go along with the alliance."

Nanami's looked completely bored by the talk of politics. When Simone finished speaking, she said, "I hope there'll be time to walk around the city. I want to see what they're selling in those shops."

Cleo laughed. "I'll come with you. I'm sure your brother can make time for a little shopping expedition at some point."

"After a few days of mindless blather, even I'll be able to enjoy shopping," Viktor commented. Then he set to work eating his fourth omelet.

When the meal was finished- not before both Pahn and Viktor had consumed several more omelets- everyone gathered by the front doors to the McDohl mansion. There were several rounds of handshakes and hugs. Gremio suggested that they come back again when they had the chance, to which Viktor replied that they should expect them every night.

Finally, Tir stepped forward to speak with Riou. "I don't envy you," he said gravely. "I know what you're going through, and yet can't offer you any concrete advice. I wish I could tell you exactly what steps to take to win the war, to end the killing. Still, let me say this to you. With your Rune, you control a piece of destiny. However, there are things that are more important than great battles and the fates of nations. Things that are much more valuable. If you lift your eyes to some distant horizon but forget to see the friends around you who need you, then you will fail, even if you win."

"I understand," Riou answered.

"All right. Good luck, then. I'll be praying for your success."

They departed, retracing their steps along the streets towards the palace. Flik took the chance to really look at Gregminster. The morning was clear and mild, and he could feel the distant sea breeze in the air. Every road seemed to be bustling with people out running midweek errands or enjoying the fine weather. The Plaza of the Golden Goddess was crowded. Flik could hear dozens of different vendors at once, not to mention several minstrels.

With a certain amount of relief, Flik realized that they didn't stand out at all. How could they? They had to compete with a delegation of elves from the Great Forest, several dwarven blacksmiths engaged in a shouting match, and a merchant who was transporting cages with giant owls in them. The latter man was arguing with an inspector at the edge of the reflecting pool. Ahead of them, a knight in green and orange was manfully shouting for recruits above the din of noise. This brought a chuckle to Flik. He'd seen the Knights of Kamaro only once before in his life, and this man was a long way from home.

As they approached the palace, Flik noticed a long line of petitioners and sightseers waiting to enter. However, Varkas was there to guide them past the crowd and through the gates. They were led to a different room in the palace, not the audience hall, but a conference room where they could negotiate away from prying eyes. Lepant and Tesla were there, as were Sheena, Alen, and Grenseal. There were also two women that hadn't been present before. Flik recognized General Valeria immediately, but it took him a moment for him to place the other as the Rokkaku ninja Kasumi. Just like several other members of the Liberation Army, Kasumi had matured in the intervening two years. As an afterthought, Flik saw that there was another man in the room, one that he didn't recognize.

Lepant stood up to greet the delegation from Jowston. "Welcome. Let us dispense with the formalities and get right to the meat of the discussion." He gestured towards the unfamiliar man. "This is Gordon. He's a wealthy factor here in Gregminster who's agreed to be the financial agent for our side of the alliance. He'll be in charge of transporting the army up the Dunan River. After that, he'll join you in Dunan Castle to coordinate our expenses."

Flik studied Gordon more closely. His face, knuckles, and the red cap he wore suggested that he'd had a rough beginning. On the other hand, the fabric of his gray cape and blue shirt looked expensive. Flik stood up, signaling his desire to speak. "If I may ask, why are you sending him? Shouldn't someone from the government be in charge your finances?"

"That would require that we wait while the Senate debates giving us the money. Personally, I hate sitting around waiting for others to take action. Instead, Gordon will bear the immediate monetary costs and receive certain compensations for his services."

"It'll cost a lot of potch to move an army," Flik responded. "You must be offering something valuable in return."

Lepant's smile was almost devious. "I'm offering a guarantee. Or rather, you're the ones who'll be offering it. The condition for this alliance is that Jowston, or whatever political structure you build in its place, repeal all tariffs, taxes, and excises placed on merchants from the Toran Republic."

"Very sneaky," Viktor observed.

"It's robbery!" Freed sputtered. "How can you speak of trust and try to pull a trick like this? South Window needs that potch to maintain roads and irrigation canals. My people would run me out of the province if I returned with conditions like that."

"On the contrary, your people would think you the model of wisdom," Gordon argued. "I've been observing the war up north. Consider all of the fields that have gone unplanted or untended because of the fighting. Jowston will need food before long. Eliminating the tariffs will bring down the costs for me to transport food and, ultimately, the costs to you and your people." His smile matched Lepant's. "Now, do you want to go home and tell your people that food will cost more because of your stubbornness?"

Freed glanced at Riou. "My lord, what do you think?"

"Do the same for us," Riou answered. "You eliminate your taxes on merchants from Jowston."

Gordon laughed. "The kid's no fool."

Lepant's response was less mirthful. "I'll have to argue with the Senate for months to get that passed."

"So what?" Gordon replied. "Making our two countries trading partners is a great idea. Not only is it more potch for both of us, but it'll also make our goods cheaper than Harmonia's. The Senate wouldn't want our merchants to lose revenue to Harmonia, would they?"

"Fine, I'll agree to the terms." Lepant scowled as if he'd bitten into something sour. "But I can't promise the Senate will ratify a free-trade agreement."

"That's fine," Riou said. "If they don't, we'll simply cancel our end of the deal after the war's over."

Lepant's eyes goggled and then he started laughing great big belly laughs. "Such honesty!" the president wheezed finally. "You'll be the end of all politicking once you win the war." He turned to Gordon. "How about it? Are you ready to accept that he'll cut you out if I don't deliver what he wants?"

Gordon shrugged. "If you can't get a simple agreement like that through the Senate, I could always apply for citizenship in Jowston. Lord Riou looks to have some potential as a leader."

"Mercenary," Lepant bantered. He looked at Riou. "When you win the war, don't establish a republic. It brings out the worst natures in all of your associates. Now, do you accept the terms that we've negotiated?"

"They are acceptable," Riou said.

"Good. Let us move on to the matter of soldiers. I have dispatched orders to Kwaba Fortress and the Border Guards. Five thousand men will march north to aid you in the fight against Luca Blight. Their leader will be one of our Six Great Generals, Valeria."

Valeria got up from her seat and bowed formally, careful not to let her brown hair trail into her eyes. Though Flik had not spent much time speaking with her during the Liberation War, he knew that she was serious and dedicated to her work. Even in the conference room, she was wearing a breastplate over her red tunic. When she spoke, her tone was professional, but not unfriendly. "Greetings, Lord Riou. I shall endeavor to bring this war to a swift and victorious conclusion."

Lepant nodded and gestured towards the other woman. "This is General Kasumi, also vice-chancellor of the ninja of Rokkaku. She will lead them in your aid."

In contrast to Valeria, Kasumi smiled broadly as she got up. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lord Riou. Is that you, Flik, Viktor? I look forward to working with some familiar faces." Her manner was different from Valeria's, but she was ready for battle too. She was wearing a red battle robe and had her black hair cut short. The only frivolous part of her outfit was the pink scarf she had wound around her neck.

"These two women are pillars of the Republic," Lepant stated. "I trust them with all of my heart. I only wish that my duties didn't prevent me from joining them, and you, in your fight against Luca Blight."

"Damn, you're one lucky dog," Sheena commented from his seat. "Father's entrusted not one, but two hot women to you! Makes me almost want to go back north with you. Almost." He winked knowingly. Valeria's expression didn't change, but her right hand balled into a fist. Kasumi blushed, then frowned.

Lepant's face colored with anger. "Sheena…that's enough out of you. I didn't invite you to this important meeting just so you could make inappropriate remarks. You must learn discipline if you are to have any future working with me."

"Yes, dad." He sighed and leaned back in his chair, which promptly tipped over. Lepant rolled his eyes.

Tesla cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. "I believe all the important points have been considered. With your permission, President, I shall have the proper documents drawn up for the signing ceremony tonight."

"Yes, good. Lord Riou, there will be a formal reception after the signing, in the Hanging Gardens at the top of this palace. Many of the important Senators will be there. That will be your chance to help me sell the alliance. Viktor and Flik, you two should attend as well. If the Senators can see that two legends from the Liberation War are fighting alongside Lord Riou, it will definitely help to sway some votes."

Sweat broke out on Flik's forehead. "A reception? I'm not sure we're really cut out for that kind of crowd."

"You think I like receptions?" Lepant asked, then he laughed. "I was a merchant before the war. Now I've got to spend all of my time pretending to be polite with people who hate me because of my former social class."

Flik still didn't want to attend. He looked to Viktor, who was ready with the next excuse. "We didn't really bring clothes for a formal engagement. I wouldn't want to offend anyone."

Lepant glared. "That's a lie, Viktor, and you know it. You'd go out of your way to offend them, I'm sure. Besides, I want you to attend dressed as you are. It'll remind most of them that they sat out the Liberation War, maybe stir a few guilty consciences over to our side."

"You know, the more I experience it, the less I like politics," Viktor groused.

They remained in the palace for lunch, which was taken on an upper balcony. Lepant kept the conversation away from the war, instead speaking with Riou and Nanami about the various regions of the Republic, and the people therein. He even invited them to tour the country once peace had returned. Nanami enthusiastically accepted the offer, but Flik noted the Riou appeared distracted, as if he wasn't really listening. Lepant seemed to notice too, and didn't press Riou on the point.

After lunch, they retired back to the McDohl mansion. They briefly discussed the day's events before Cleo, Oulan, and Nanami hustled Riou out the front door to do some quick shopping for the reception. Flik was also feeling energetic, and a sudden fancy struck him.

"I'm going to go up the street and see the Silverberg mansion."

"There's not much to see," Pahn said. "It's still the same as before the war, except that nobody lives there."

"So what? I still want to see it."

"You okay?" Viktor asked. "I wouldn't want you to have a breakdown in the middle of the street."

"I'm fine," Flik said firmly, feeling the first pangs of annoyance. "I can take care of myself."

Viktor walked over towards him. "I think I'll go with you. Never did get many chances to see that place."

"Make sure to be back before too late," Gremio warned. "I'm preparing a light meal for you to eat before the reception."

"I hear you," Flik said. He turned towards the doors.

"Wait." Tir's voice brought Flik up short. He turned back to look at the young man, who was smiling slightly. "I hope you find what you're looking for."

The words brought memories rushing out of the recesses of Flik's mind. He tried to block them off, all the while meeting Tir's eyes. Finally, Flik asked, "What does your Rune say…this time?"

Tir shook his head. "The truth, as always. I don't believe that the True Runes even understand the concept of lying. The words that I spoke to you that time were true, but perhaps lacking in perspective on my part."

"I see," Flik said cautiously.

Tir smiled again. "No, you do not. That's the problem. You must find the answer yourself. I hope you do."

Flik tried to shrug casually. "Well then, we'll be back. Let's go, Viktor."


	58. Chapter 58 The Only Answer

**Chapter 58 – The Only Answer**

"You shall die in battle. You shall die in vain, never attaining what you desire."

Those had been Tir McDohl's words to Flik two years ago. They had been unasked for, given in a moment of anger. Flik had pondered those words many times since then. He'd never once considered giving up the sword, even after nearly dying at the end of the Liberation War. Whatever the future held, he couldn't see himself taking up any other profession.

These thoughts were in his head as he and Viktor strolled down the street in the direction of the Silverberg mansion. The houses here were gated, lying behind tall walls of white brick. A carriage clattered up the street, transporting one of the rich. Those on foot, including Viktor and Flik, nimbly got out of its way. Flik was glad that his old city reflexes seemed to be in order. He knew that some of the carriage drivers wouldn't hesitate to use their whips on people to clear the way.

In contrast with the rest of the street, the area in front of the Silverberg mansion was quiet. Its gate was secured by a chain and large padlock. Looking beyond the entrance, Flik didn't see any activity on the grounds.

Viktor made an experimental tug on the gates. The chain rattled, but nothing opened. "Looks like they don't want guests."

Flik checked the gate, looking at the gaps in the iron. "I bet we could climb over."

"You are not serious."

"Why not? You used to do this sort of thing all the time."

Viktor shook his head. "First of all, it wasn't 'all the time'. Secondly, I never broke in anywhere on a lark, but only after careful planning. Third, I never moved in broad daylight where people could see me."

Flik ignored him, climbing up on the gate. In truth, he was nervous, but he felt a need to get closer to the house. He heard Viktor sigh and begin hauling himself up and over. Moments later, Flik's feet were on the ground on the other side. No one had shouted out any challenge. He wiped his forehead as Viktor dropped down next to him.

"You see, no problem at all."

That's when the dogs started barking. A pair of large, black, lean dogs were racing towards them. Flik drew his sword, but the dogs didn't leap, instead pulling up to growl and snap at him.

"What've you got there, boys? More of those juvenile delinquents?" A middle-aged man had appeared from one of the old guard buildings and was walking towards Viktor and Flik. Even though he had a limp, he was carrying a Harmonian-style halberd and he had the air of an accomplished veteran. His eyes did widen as he caught sight of the trespassers.

"Grown-up delinquents, then. What're you doing here? Was the chain not evidence enough that visitors aren't welcome?"

The dogs had paced back to join their master, so Flik decided to sheathe his sword and try diplomacy. "I didn't mean to intrude. I just wanted to look around the mansion. It brings back a lot of memories, that's all."

The guard scowled. "We aren't offering tours, you know. Lord Silverberg doesn't want hordes of people tromping through his ancestral home at all hours of the day."

"You do know your lord is working for Highland these days?" Viktor asked.

"I have my duty- it doesn't matter where Lord Silverberg is. Now, if you want a tour, I suggest you go to the palace. I hear they offer a smashing lecture on Tir McDohl, hero of the Liberation War." He rolled his eyes.

Flik decided that nothing but the truth would suffice for this man. "Listen, I'm Flik of the Blue Lightning. I used to…work for Lady Odessa Silverberg in this mansion, back before the war. Maybe it sounds silly, but I'd just like to go in there for a little while, for nostalgia's sake. I promise not to touch anything."

The guard was unimpressed. "You will note that Lady Odessa Silverberg is no longer affiliated with this mansion. This property is under the exclusive control of Lord Leon Silverberg, who has declared that there shall be no visitors. Moreover, this really isn't the place to go searching for Lady Odessa. For that, you should try the sewers under Lenankamp. Go back far enough and I'm sure you'll find some bones."

Flik went for his sword, rage making his vision narrow. The dogs bristled and began barking, the guard- too slowly- started to shift his weapon to meet Flik's attack. Grasping the grip of his blade firmly, Flik drew, intending to take one of the dogs with a slash downwards and then reverse the attack to disarm the guard.

Unfortunately, he didn't get the blade more than a quarter out before Viktor clamped down on his arm, preventing any further motion.

"What're you doing, Viktor? Let me go!"

Viktor shook his head. "Not the time or the place, Flik. It wouldn't do you any good to hurt him just because he insulted Odessa's memory." The guard relaxed now that Flik was no longer a threat, though the dogs didn't, sensing Flik's continued anger. Viktor's voice was deceptively cool when he spoke to the guard. "You can let us out now. You are right about one thing, though. Odessa probably can't be found here. I'm sure her spirit would never associate with the house's current occupants."

The guard pulled a loop of keys off his belt. "Think whatever you want, as long as you depart." He jammed one of the keys into the padlock and clicked it open, the chains rattling as he pulled them off the gate.

Viktor didn't take his hands off of Flik's arm until they were both safely on the other side and the chains and lock were securely back in place.

"I wasn't going to kill him," Flik seethed.

"Really? You kind of looked it. I don't think a murder would've gone over too well with our hosts."

"How can you be so calm?" Flik shouted. "He insulted Odessa!"

"He did, but she wasn't his intended target. You were." He jabbed one finger right into Flik's chest. "And he succeeded, at least in getting you riled up. We're in the middle of a delicate situation here, and you're the one who's supposed to be keeping a clear head. Leave the excessive emotion to me, okay?"

Flik wanted to remain angry, he really did, but laughter kept getting in the way. "Excessive emotion, huh. You just want all the fun for yourself, old bear."

"Since when am I 'old bear?' I'll have you know that I still have all the vigor of youth. And I'm also the model of wisdom, unlike you."

"Okay, okay, I surrender." He let the remainder of his laughter escape on the afternoon breeze. "I guess we're not going to see anything here. Let's return to the house."

They did. Gremio expressed surprise at seeing the two of them back so quickly, but Tir seemed to catch Flik's mood and forestalled any questions. Flik, for his part, was grateful and went back to his room to rest for the reception. He woke a few hours later to the sound of Nanami returning from her excursion. From what he could hear, she sounded absolutely ecstatic about the results.

When Flik came down to eat Gremio's meal, Nanami was wearing her dress. It was a pale blue gown, with a lot of white lace on the bodice, sleeves, and skirt. He wasn't enough of a connoisseur to judge the fine details, and simply remarked that it made her look "cute." That was apparently not the response she was looking for, because she sniffed and walked away from him in a huff.

"Nice going," Viktor said. "You should've tried 'dazzling' or 'radiant.'"

Flik took another look at Nanami as she retreated into the dinning room. "No way. Dazzling and radiant are for Odessa, not a teenage girl."

Gremio's pre-reception meal was potato chowder with more of his homemade bread. The food was filling, but didn't upset Flik's stomach. That was good, because he was feeling more nervous as the reception came closer.

Someone, likely Gremio, had also seen to hiring a carriage to take the attendees to the palace. Sitting down on his seat, Flik closed his eyes and listened to the conversation of his compatriots as the vehicle began to move.

"I hope I don't mess anything up," Freed said. Flik, even without seeing, could imagine him wiping his glasses.

"I hope they have good wine," Viktor added. "Maybe I can slink off into some corner and get good and drunk."

"You two are no fun at all," Nanami declared. "I can't wait to see what everyone is wearing."

"And after you've seen what they're all wearing, then what?" Viktor asked. "Then you get to stand around for a couple of hours doing nothing."

"You really think it'll go that long?" Freed responded.

"It'll be just like a reception back in South Window," Viktor answered. "You should be right in your element."

"But back in South Window, I knew everyone and where the political pitfalls were."

"Eh, it's no big deal," Viktor said reassuringly. "Politics is basically the same everywhere- just support whatever anyone says, and if something contradicts, deny it all."

"What about you, Riou?" Flik asked, opening his eyes and looking at their leader. "You nervous?"

Riou's outfit was a basic black suit of tunic and trousers. He looked rather out of place without his weapons or normal clothing, though he'd managed to continue wearing his circlet. "I'm fine. Everything's going to go all right."

"Let's hope so," Flik replied.

At the palace, an attendant guided them up several levels towards the Hanging Gardens. Flik noted that the route was different than the one that they had climbed two years ago in the final battle of the Liberation War. Of course, the palace had been heavily damaged in the fighting.

There was already quite a crowd as Flik and the others emerged up the last set of stairs and onto the rooftop garden. Lepant stood out amongst the guests. He was wearing orange and seemed not the least bit self-conscious about it. Seeing Riou, he smiled broadly and walked over to greet the new arrivals.

"Welcome, all of you! Tonight, you shall hobnob with the most eminent citizens of the Republic." Flik thought he winked on "eminent." Lepant continued, "And, of course, my beautiful wife, Eileen."

Lepant's wife was very striking, with long blonde hair that framed a pale face and dark, recessed eyes. Her dress was maroon, and its modesty served only to heighten her beauty. Flik knew that, as with Lepant, looks could be deceiving. She had joined her husband in Tir's service two years ago and had learned enough of the dagger to be capable of defending herself.

"So this is Riou," she said, smiling. "My dear husband, look at him. You should be giving him twice the support, don't you think?"

Lepant suddenly looked very surprised. "I'd love to, dear, but I'm sure the Senate would go into conniptions."

"You could always dissolve the Senate."

Lepant seemed to be trying to figure out whether that was in earnest. "I never took you for the type that liked tyranny."

"Oh, it needn't be tyranny," she replied. "Absolute monarchy has such a nice ring to it."

"Yes, but not where the Senators can hear you, please." Lepant glanced at Riou. "See, this is what I have to put up with."

"If you rogues are done plotting how best to undo the liberation, there are some other people who'd like to see the honored quest." One of the senators was walking over to join the group around the president. It took Flik a moment to recognize the man as another member of the old Liberation Army.

Lepant introduced him. "This is Warren. The scoundrel just happens to be the Chairman of the Senate. You may ignore him at your leisure."

Warren laughed. Before the war, he'd been a minor noble in the Senan region, personally leading patrols against bandits to make the region safer for travelers. In those days, his brown hair and beard had been much scruffier, but he'd had them trimmed slightly, making him look more respectable. "Such disdain, is it any wonder the Senate is against you, when you treat your allies like this?"

"I'd say they're against me on principle, more than anything else."

"Well, the principle of divided government, anyway." Warren turned his attention to Riou. "It's my pleasure to make your acquaintance. I see you've got some old friends in your entourage."

Viktor shrugged. "Thanks for smuggling us out last time."

Now Lepant looked genuinely upset. "So you knew they were alive and didn't tell me?"

"Now, now, I asked him to keep quiet about that," Viktor said. "It made things easier for all of us."

"I've half a mind to offer you a desk job simply to see the look of horror on your face, Viktor," Lepant threatened.

Meanwhile, Warren extended his hand to Freed. "Lord Yamamoto, I've heard about the speech you gave the president the other day. As a representative of one of the border districts, I'd like it very much if we could talk a bit."

"Y-yes, of course." Freed and Warren walked away, disappearing into the crowd. More people came up to meet with Riou. After a while, Flik got some feel for the politics of the situation. Many of the senators were former nobles who'd used their wealth and connections to get elected. These men seemed to be universally opposed to action in the north. However, a handful of the younger nobles were quite eager to help.

One of these nobles in particular was very effusive in making his opinions known.

"My dear friends Viktor and Flik! How could you two run off and find another noble cause without informing me?" The speaker was a man in a green doublet, white tights, and a dark red cape with a rose embroidered on it.

"Uh, Vincent, I hate to tell you this, but we're not friends," Viktor answered.

With a gesture of his hand, Vincent De Boule swept some of his blond hair out of his eyes. "You are quite right. 'Friendship' cannot describe the bond between us. Viktor, do you not remember those long hours of our captivity in Moravia Castle?"

"I'd been trying to forget."

"Truly, only the deep bond between our souls sustained us during that darkness."

"Actually, it was the gruel that kept me going."

"That bond, forged in the fires of bondage-"

Viktor gagged. "Let's not go there."

"-confirmed in glorious victory, is now renewed in another call to arms. Even had Simone not told me of your plight, rest assured that I would've flown to this challenge with all my might. Come, we must make plans to topple the vile Luca Blight and his evil ambitions."

Flik edged to the side. "I'm going to get something to eat. I'll talk to you later, Viktor."

"Hey! Get back here! You can't leave me to suffer like this."

Flik did. He pretended not to hear and made his way towards the buffet. Before he got there, he had to exchange pleasantries with a dozen people who wanted to shake his hand and thank him for his service to the republic. That got tiresome quickly, especially when his stomach started to growl.

With one last handshake, Flik managed to get to the food. An array of pastries filled with various pastes awaited him. He took one and experimentally deposited it in his mouth. The paste was of meat and quite delicious. He popped several more of the pastries into his mouth before he noticed the chef regarding him with disapproval.

"Psst."

The voice startled Flik into dropping the pastry he was holding. He glanced around the room before he heard it again, coming from the other side of the table. Without hesitating, he hurdled it, earning him another glare from the chef. A stand of tall flowers was beyond the table.

"In here."

Why would anyone want to speak with him here? The thought of a romantic interlude popped into his head, but he dismissed the notion. He'd made sure to respond coldly to the noble ladies who wanted to flirt with him. He shook his head and plunged into the flowers, black orchids, he thought.

The voice belonged to Kasumi, who was not dressed for the reception but still in her battle robe. Though she was smiling in a friendly manner, her voice was tight when she spoke. "Is _he _here?"

"Riou? Yeah, he's over by the president."

Her response came out in a harsh whisper. "Not Riou. _Him_, is he here?

Now Flik was confused. "Who?"

Her face became even more tense as she said, "Tir. There's a rumor that he's back. Is it true?"

Flik wondered if he ought to tell the truth. Tir had expressed a desire to remain hidden, but Kasumi certainly didn't have any political designs on him. He didn't see any harm in telling her. "Yeah, he's back. You can visit him in the mansion, if you want. He'd probably like that. Just don't go telling everyone-"

She was gone.

The reception lasted for a few more hours. By that time, Flik was thoroughly tired of shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries. He wasn't the only one. Riou and Nanami were practically asleep on their feet as Flik tried to chivy them into their carriage. Viktor had a glazed look in his eyes that suggested too much to drink. As he climbed into the cab, he nearly smashed his face on the overhang, and then proceeded to lie down across one of the seats, snoring.

At least Freed was still keyed up. Flik could hear him repeating, "I hope that went well," as the carriage began to move. He didn't stop until they rolled up to the McDohl mansion. Pahn and Cleo were there to help Riou and Nanami to bed. Flik, with Freed's help, rolled Viktor off his seat. This roused him sufficiently for them to guide him into the house, where he found a chair and started snoring again.

Flik carefully climbed the stairs to the second level and the bedrooms. It was late at night and the mansion was extremely dark. By feel, he found the door to his room and pushed it open.

A voice caused him to stop in the entrance. It was soft and indistinct, and Flik couldn't make out the words that were spoken. He glanced up and down the hall, finally seeing a thin strip of light at the end of the hallway, coming from Tir's room. Curiosity made him creep down the hall. The speaker was definitely female.

One of the floorboards creaked under Flik's boot. He froze in place, suddenly feeling very guilty. Whatever this was about, he had no right to intrude on it. He turned about and retreated back towards his own room. By the time he got there, the conversation in Tir's room had ended, not that Flik had heard Tir speak. Flik closed the door, undressed, and got into bed. He could hear the sound of someone pacing in Tir's room. After a while, even that ceased.

The following morning, Flik discovered that Tir wasn't present for breakfast. Gremio mentioned that "the young master is feeling a little indisposed" and said nothing more on the subject, but he clearly looked concerned. Tir's disappearance set a tone for the day. The weather became stiflingly hot and there was no summons from the palace. Most of the people in the mansion were prepared to sit around and do as little as possible.

Except Flik. The restless excitement that had gripped him yesterday returned in full force, and he wandered from room to room, heedless of the heat. Eventually, he found himself in the foyer of the mansion, pondering the front door.

Viktor, who was sitting in the same chair he'd been dumped in last night, asked, "What's gotten into you, Flik? It's too hot to do anything. Look at me, I've probably sweated twenty pounds off sitting here."

The sound of Viktor's voice galvanized Flik. "I'm going out," he answered. "I need to speak to Varkas."

Viktor raised his head, a small concession to his interest. "Varkas? Is he hoarding ice blocks or something?"

Flik hardly heard him. "I've got to get out; there's a place I need to see." He opened the door and walked out into a solid wall of torrid air. It didn't sap his energy at all; rather, it seemed to give him more. He walked briskly past the other pedestrians, not seeing the bewildered looks they gave him.

Arriving at the palace, he hunted down Varkas and explained what he wanted.

The ex-bandit frowned in reply. "You sure you want to go there? It's going to be a lot of trouble to set this up."

"It's important to me."

Varkas nodded. "I understand that. No disrespect, but, do you really want to go picking at old wounds?"

"I'll be all right," Flik said impatiently. "It's been two years, and I need to see that place."

"Okay. I'll see what I can do. Be at the Gates of Kranach tomorrow morning."

Returning to the McDohl mansion, Flik felt both nervous and elated. Viktor was waiting patiently in the foyer as he stepped through the door.

"I'm going with you," he announced firmly.

Flik's mood didn't change at all. "No problem." Feeling hungry, he began walking towards the kitchen.

Viktor got up and followed him. "So, where are we going?"

The reality of his situation finally hit Flik. He stopped in the middle of the hall, considering if he really wanted to undertake the journey. Viktor overtook him and turned around to look at his friend's face. Flik quickly put on a smile, to reassure himself if nothing more, and answered in one word. "Lenankamp."

Flik hardly slept that night as different emotions warred for supremacy in his psyche. He tossed and turned, wrapping the sheets of his bed around him, then kicking them off completely. It didn't help matters that a thunderstorm came up in the middle of the night, the thunder rattling the windows and making his rune react. Still, when dawn arrived, Flik was fully awake.

He dressed and went to pound on Viktor's door. It took his friend a little longer to get ready. The house was completely quiet, except for Viktor's yawning, as the two of them descended the stairs and walked to the front doors.

Tir was waiting for them, a pair of box lunches in his hands. He smiled at Flik's surprise. "When Gremio told me about your plans, I asked him to prepare these for you two."

"You're feeling better?" Flik asked.

Tir sighed, his smile disappearing off his face. He brought the Soul Eater up to eye level before he answered. "No one is ever permitted everything he desires. It's even more important for the bearer of a True Rune to respect that rule." He shook his head. "I just never imagined that it would hurt this much." He handed over the lunches. "Good luck, Flik. I admire you for being able to face your pain." Flik nodded in response, too keyed up to think about the implications of those words.

Outside, the early morning was cool and misty. The two men trudged along cobbles that were wet from the rain, heading down the main boulevard until they got to the great gates at the south of the city, the Gates of Kranach. Flik was dismayed at the crowd that awaited him. Varkas was there, along with a minister of protocol from the palace, a carriage, and several squads of mounted infantry.

The minister greeted them before Flik could speak. "Welcome, gentlemen. If you would please enter the carriage, we can escort you to Lenankamp posthaste."

Flik shot a look of annoyance at Varkas. "What's going on here?"

"It's the best I could do." He shrugged his shoulders.

"We don't need the escort," Flik responded.

"That simply won't do," the minister said. "We would be mortified if honored guests of the Republic were to come to any harm."

Flik was prepared to argue some more, but Viktor grabbed his shoulder, catching his attention. "Let's do what they want. You don't want to stand here all day, do you? Besides, it's not like they're going to go down…all the way."

"I don't need any minders!" Flik said harshly. He shrugged Viktor off and walked towards the carriage. He climbed in and took one of the seats. Viktor entered more slowly and sat across from him. Neither man said anything as the carriage lurched forward.

Initially, the ride south was made in silence. Flik was upset, not only because of the hassle, but because he'd yelled at Viktor. He felt foolish for rebuking his friend that way. Meanwhile, he was also on edge at the prospect of returning to Lenankamp.

"Hey, this is pretty good. You want some, Flik?"

Flik looked up, startled. Viktor had popped open one of the box lunches and was eating a tuna sandwich. He stuffed the whole thing into his mouth, apparently without a care in the world. Flik couldn't help himself, he started laughing.

"What so funny?" The question was muffled by the fact that Viktor's mouth was full, but Flik heard it clearly. "If that's what you think, then I'll have yours, too." He pantomimed opening the other box and eating the sandwich there.

Flik lunged for his lunch. "Oh no you don't, you big ogre. You've been eating too much lately. Remember Doctor Huan's instructions? You ought to go back to the all-salad diet."

Viktor put on a mournful face. "You can't make me do that. It would be cruel and inhumane. I'd waste away to bones." As if to prove the point, he grabbed at his stomach. He came away with a healthy roll of flesh.

Before Flik realized it, they were in Lenankamp. To an outsider, there was little difference between this town and any of the others that ran up and down the length of the Tolna Canal. It had the usual assortment of rich and poor, shops, and wharves. That was why Odessa had picked it to serve as the headquarters for the Liberation Army after Barbarossa openly declared war on them.

In those days, the residents would have cleared the streets any time a detachment of soldiers arrived. Flik wondered what the people thought now, with the escort of mounted men riding through the town. As instructed, the carriage pulled up to a modest inn. When Flik stepped out, he noted it's sign- Keyaki. His excitement pulsing in his veins, he ran for the doors, leaving Viktor behind. Underneath this building, this was where the Liberation Army's leadership had gathered and made their plans. This was the place where Odessa-

"What's this?" Flik asked.

He'd just stepped inside the building. The interior was completely different than two years ago. One half of the building had been converted into a shop, calling itself "The Liberation Army Gift Shop." Moreover, there was a huge crowd of people milling around. Flik muscled his way forward, ignoring the protests as he tried to figure out what was going on. He was moving in the direction of the passage underground.

A woman dressed in the outfit of a Liberation Army soldier intercepted him. "I'm sorry, sir, but the next tour isn't for another half hour. Please be sure to have your tickets ready."

With an indignant squawk, she jumped aside, rather than be trampled by Flik. All of his outrage from earlier was back, redoubled. This place was sacred to him; he wasn't going to wait for some tour. Did she not realize who he was?

"Sir, I must ask you to step back." This was a man's voice, a bouncer, who had blocked his path.

For a moment, Flik stared dumbly at this obstacle. The bouncer was nearly as big as Viktor. It didn't matter, nothing was going to keep him from his goal. He lunged suddenly, using leverage to drive the bouncer aside. He was only partly aware of gasps from the onlookers. He continued on, finding that they'd replaced the ladder leading down with a set of stairs, which he took several at a stride.

They'd changed the headquarters, too, cleaned it up and made it brighter. Flik hardly noticed. His feet were carrying him forward, down corridors that he'd traveled habitually two years ago. He'd not been here since that day, but he'd been told where Odessa died. This was his destination now.

Turning a corner, he was there. It was a small side-room off to one side, completely unadorned. Even the bloodstains had faded in the dampness. Yet, this was where she was slain, Flik was sure of it. This was where she'd been betrayed, and he had been absent from her side.

"Odessa." His eyes began filling with tears, there was no helping it. He squeezed them shut, trying to fight back. He could hear his own voice creaking. "I'm sorry."

His legs gave way, dropping him to his hands and knees. "I'm sorry," he repeated, louder. A sob wracked his body, then another. All he could do was cry, hating himself for his weakness.

People were approaching him. Through the tears, he could hear voices.

"Hey! Flik, where are you?" Viktor's voice, followed by, "Damn!"

Flik wanted to get up, but couldn't. He was still crying, his stomach in agony. Viktor knelt down next to him, putting his hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. Take your time, buddy."

Flik coughed wetly. He couldn't speak for several minutes, trying to get control of himself. He finally spoke, in a whisper, "Why did it happen? Why did she have to die? Why couldn't I save her?"

Viktor shook his head glumly. "I don't know, Flik. You can't blame yourself for it."

Flik pounded his fist into the stone floor in frustration. "Why aren't there any answers? Is Odessa's death meaningless?" He looked up, at Viktor, and saw that there were tears in Viktor's eyes.

"Sometimes, tears are the only answer."


	59. Chapter 59 The Wolf is Waking

**Chapter 59 – The Wolf is Waking**

_In Solis 460, Shieldsdei, the 27__th__ of Ulya:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I haven't seen many of the Republic's soldiers, but President Lepant assures us that they are moving and that the first ships have already departed, heading west towards Kirov and then north up the Dunan River. Well, it's not like I've been out much to check on their progress, but Riou seems satisfied. I don't know by how much the alliance resolution passed, but apparently the margin was slim enough that Lepant doesn't want to rub it in by having the soldiers march through the capital. Or maybe the direct route to the ships doesn't pass by Gregminster._

_In other news, Ko, the poisoned boy from Banner Village, has made a complete recovery. Doctor Liukan was impressed by the youth's vitality and has discharged him back into our care. Lucky for me, Nanami was willing to play "mother" for him. They've spent the past few days running around the city._

Flik sighed and stared at his journal. It'd been four days since Lenankamp, but he'd written nothing about those events. He shut the book, not feeling like adding more. He probably wouldn't ever write about that. Still, he didn't leave the room, but kept staring at his diary. He shook his head, opened the book, and quickly scribbled two more sentences.

_I look forward to leaving this place tomorrow. There are too many memories here for me to sleep comfortably._

That night, Gremio cooked up a farewell feast consisting of his delicious stew, homemade bread, and several varieties of vegetables. The meal was progressing well when suddenly there was a knocking from the main doors below. All of the conversation stopped.

"Are we expecting any other visitors?" Tir asked.

"None that I know of, young master," Gremio answered.

Pahn got up from his chair. "I'll see what they want." He grimly stalked out of the dining room. Flik heard his footsteps on the stairs leading down. He glanced at Viktor, seeing a reflection of his own concern.

"Maybe we should get our weapons," Viktor muttered, not quite a question.

Tir shook his head. "No. Whoever this is, he's not here to kill anyone or arrest us. That sort of thing ended with the empire."

Now Flik could hear Pahn's voice from downstairs. The words were indistinct, but his surprise was evident. Flik tensed for sounds of a struggle. Instead, two sets of footsteps climbed back up the stairs, approaching the dining room. Pahn entered first, not bothering to disguise his stunned expression.

"Lord McDohl, you have a guest."

President Lepant walked in before Pahn had finished the introduction. There was a clatter as people got to their feet out of respect, but Lepant put out his hands. "That's not necessary, especially not for you, Lord McDohl."

"You are the president," Tir replied. "You're worthy of that respect."

"No," Lepant said firmly. "Not from you. Sit back down, Lord McDohl, please."

When Tir was finally back in his seat, Gremio asked, "Why are you here, President?"  
"Rumors of your return have been all over the capital ever since Lord Riou arrived. I had wondered how best to contact you, and I've decided that the direct method is probably best. Lord Tir, I ask you to take up the Presidency of the Republic once again."

"I can't do that," Tir answered. "I cannot take up that power."

"The people love you," Lepant pleaded. "You fought so hard for them but disappeared so quickly after the war was over. In these troubled times, I fear we need your strength more than ever. Look at how much trouble I had getting that simple alliance passed. Your presence would inspire us to unity."

"Which is exactly why I won't sit on the presidential chair. If I did that, who would ever vote against me? Who would ever dare to challenge me? No, the people would keep electing me, over and over, until there was no one alive who could ever remember a time when I wasn't president. What then? I would be worse than the emperor that we overturned." He held out the Soul Eater, so that everyone in the room could see it. "Even in Falena, tradition says that the queen never bears the Sun Rune."

Flik had not known that about Falena. Of course, there was a lot he didn't know about the southern nation.

Gremio cleared his throat to fill the silence. "You must understand that the young master's words are in earnest. He wants what is best for the Republic, just as you do."

"I will respect your decision and speak no more on the subject," Lepant conceded. "Now then, I hope you have enough for me, because it's been a long time since I've had Gremio's cooking, and I'm hungry." He sat down in Pahn's seat, earning him a look of protest from Pahn.

That night, Flik slept soundly. In the morning he, along with the others, woke to find that Gremio and Tir had departed before them. Breakfast was uninspired without Gremio's cooking.

"Why did he leave like that?" Nanami asked, chewing on some toast.

"It's the way he is," Pahn said. "He's got no use for ceremony. Honestly, I think he enjoys the freedom."

"I was hoping he'd help us," Riou murmured. "I certainly could've used his experience."

Cleo smiled as she answered, "I'm sure Lord McDohl thinks highly of your abilities, Riou. That's why he's willing to leave the war in your hands. Stand by your friends and don't waver. You will defeat Luca Blight in the end."

"Thank you," Riou replied.

There were more carriages waiting for them after breakfast, to convey them back to the palace. There were also old traveling companions to meet. Stallion had spent much of his time in Toran in the Forest of Illusion, visiting the destroyed hometree of the elves. Likewise, Simone had been moving among his noble friends, enlisting support for the war.

At the palace, Lepant and his family were waiting. They invited Riou and Nanami to join them in the presidential carriage, and then the entire convoy rolled west, out of the city. This time, the journey was made under fair skies, though the weather became hot quickly.

When they arrived, Flik could see that the port was still teeming with activity, filled by a dozen large galleys, though the bulk of the allied army had already departed. In fact, the horsemen that were trying to board now weren't even regular soldiers. Their leader was an elderly man in a blue cape. When the wind shifted it slightly, Flik could see the golden eagle blazing on his chest guard.

"I, Maximillian, leader of the Maximillian Knights, entreat you to let my men on board," he shouted at one of the dock masters. "A great evil lies in the north, and I intend to smite it with all of my might." He enthusiastically drew his sword, a sparkling black blade. "I shall cut down any who hinder our quest."

Lepant, who had come down from his carriage, chuckled. "I'd better go get that sorted out. I wouldn't want old Max to get winded."

As Flik watched Lepant calm the elderly knight down, his eyes strayed over the blade of a scythe moving along the rail beside one of the docked ships. The owner of that impressive weapon was a young woman with black hair, a yellow tunic, and a blue vest. In the confusion, she casually leaped the railing onto the deck and scurried away into hiding. Flik had the nagging feeling that he'd seen her before, but he couldn't place it.

He was distracted by Lepant's return. The president signaled to Tesla, who had a pair of workmen wheel out a tall, oval object that was covered by a tarp. When the tarp was pulled back, Flik could clearly see the polished surface of a full-length mirror. Along the two sides of the mirror were a pair of sinuous, golden dragons. Perched on the top was a phoenix, spreading its wings.

"This is the 'Blinking Mirror'," Lepant explained. "It's one of the treasures of the Toran Republic, used during our war of liberation." He turned over his hand to reveal a smaller version of the same mirror. "Together, these two mirrors permit the transport of a few individuals at a time to a fixed point. I believe that you will be able to put them to great use. Not only that, but I suspect that their rightful owner would want you to have it. Therefore, in honor of our alliance, I respectfully bequeath both of them to the New State Army. Take good care of them, Lord Riou." He gave the hand mirror to Riou while the workers put the tarp back over the larger mirror and wheeled it down onto the waiting galley.

All that remained was to say goodbye. Sheena shook Riou's hand and said, "My dad's really gone out of his way for you. Aren't you glad you listened to my advice?" He winked at Nanami. "Good luck to all of you. Hey, when the war's over, why don't you stop by the palace again? We can have some wild parties." Flik noted that Lepant was frowning.

"You're not coming with us?" Freed asked.

Sheena clapped him jovially on the back. "No, I think not. I've had enough fighting for one lifetime. Besides, I'm out of play money." He turned to walk towards his father, but Lepant grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him back around. Sheena tried to squirm out of his father's grip as he was propelled towards Riou. "Ouch! What's wrong, pops?"

"Lord Riou, I have a request. Take my idiot son with you. It's my shame that he has no skills, but perhaps you can find a use for him."

He let go of Sheena, who promptly began to rub his shoulder. Then his father's words sank in. "Wait a minute! What about that job you promised me, working in your administration?"

Lepant scowled. "Fool! That promise was made on the condition that you would use your travels to train and study. Instead, you've wasted both your time and my potch on trivialities. You have no concept of responsibility and are unworthy of any authority. I suggest that you learn from Lord Riou's example and end your childish behavior. In fact, you are hereby banished from Toran until you've corrected your errors." He turned his back on his son and walked towards the presidential carriage.

Sheena sank to his knees. "But…but…Mom, say something!"

Eileen glanced at her husband. "Dear, you should consider your own youth. At least give him the chance that your father gave you."

Lepant's shoulders stiffened. "I suppose." He unbuckled the family sword, Kirinji, from his belt. "Here. I lent it to you last time, but now I give it to you, just as my father gave it to me when I went out into the world on my own." He tossed it back to his son. "Sheena, do not shame the legacy of this blade. Wield it with honor, and make me proud."

Sheena didn't make any move for the scabbard. "I…Mother, please!"

"No matter what happens, know that we both love you," Eileen said, a smile on her face. "The rest of your father's judgement stands. You should start moving, before he calls soldiers to forcibly escort you to one of the ships."

Riou looked down at his new ally. "Let's go, Sheena. We need to get back to Dunan Castle as quickly as possible." By this point, Sheena was babbling incoherently. Riou nodded towards Viktor and Flik. "Viktor, pick him up and get him aboard. Flik, take care of his sword."

Viktor chuckled. "Why does Flik get all the easy jobs?"

Sheena had not recovered by the time the last galleys set sail, an hour later. A sailor with a wind rune was enlisted to put him to sleep, and he was set in a cabin to rest. The fleet sailed southwest down the Tolna Canal, aided by an onshore breeze from the ocean, and made it to Shasarazade by nightfall. There they dined with the Grand Admiral, Sonya Shulen. She assured them they would have the full protection of the Toran fleet on the return leg of the trip.

Flik didn't sleep well that night, not from fear of pirates, but because this was the place of another betrayal involving a Silverberg victim. During the Liberation War, the turncoat Sanchez had been responsible for the deaths of both Odessa and Mathiu. Even though Mathiu had made Flik swear off revenge, that didn't stop Flik from feeling bitterly angry towards him. It was just as well that he had no idea where Sanchez was now.

In the morning, Sheena had sufficiently recuperated to try and escape. Unfortunately, he managed to get lost in the lower levels of the fortress basement. It was Oulan who found him and dragged him back to the boats. He didn't complain too much, though. Flik took this as a sign that he was accepting his new fate. It turned out that his guess was wrong. The first night after Shasarazade was spent in Kirov, where Sheena attempted flight again, was caught, and ended up sleeping in the brig of the galley. Thereafter, he made no more tries at running away, probably because he didn't know the countryside well enough.

After that, the journey was uneventful. The evening of the fourth day on the river, Flik finally caught sight of the checkpoint. It was certainly changed from before. The crowds of refugees were gone, replaced by towers of boxed supplies and thousands of soldiers. Flik knew this part of the journey would be problematic, since the Dunan River went through a series of falls upstream of the border. There would be no option except to lug the supplies overland to where they could be safely transported again.

However, Shu had demonstrated his genius by anticipating the problem. When Flik and the others descended the gangplank, they were greeted by a small delegation of Apple, Ridley, Kasumi, and Valeria.

Ridley took the initiative by bowing to Riou and saying, "We have been sent to assist you, Lord Riou. Lord Shu has prepared a fleet of transports to receive the supplies at the other end of the falls, and my kobolds will help move them."

"We've also secured the help of Rokkaku," Kasumi informed them. "My ninja are scouting the path ahead and keeping the bandits away."

Riou wiped his forehead. "It seems like everything is under control here."

"Yes, but we must move quickly," Ridley warned them. "Our spies have seen the Highland Army moving out of Muse. It appears that the wolf is waking, and we must be ready for battle."

Sheena, last down the gangplank, heard this and fainted face first into the muck.

They spent the night in the border barracks. Outside, the movement of supplies continued unabated. Burning braziers marked the path through the forest, and Flik could faintly trace the line of lights from his window. When he lay down to sleep, his dreams were haunted by the image of a stalking, golden wolf. He woke up very early, feeling unrefreshed.

The morning was misty, but he could see that most of the supplies had been moved out. All that remained was a company of Toran soldiers to escort them upriver. Kasumi was also there, speaking with a pair of ninja. One appeared to be a young boy with brown hair, in a black tunic and pants. The other was an older man, large, blond, in white trimmed with green. The two of them bowed to Kasumi and flitted off into the mist.

She turned to face Flik as he approached. "Good morning," she said cheerily. Flik stifled a yawn, which made his ears pop. "Sasuke and Mondo tell me that the path ahead is clear, so I'm not expecting any problems." Flik's head felt like it was stuffed full of rocks. He grunted in an affirmative manner and shambled off to find some food.

When they all departed later in the morning, the mist remained heavy, and it was difficult to see more than a few yards at a time. Flik knew that he was going to have to trust Kasumi and the ninja. The escorting soldiers fanned out around Riou, and the group set off. Their progress was steady, only hindered when one of the soldiers slipped and fell down a slope. His ankle was broken, and a pair of soldiers were tasked to carry him back to the border station. Flik took this development stoically. Even outside of combat, there were many ways in which a soldier could end up a casualty.

Shu's ships were waiting for them above the falls. Again, most of the men and supplies had already moved on. It was a simple matter for Riou's party to board and set out upriver again. They paused briefly at Banner Village to drop Ko off. The young boy bounded into his mother's arms, breathlessly describing all the famous people he'd met. In exchange, a troop of militia from the village boarded the galley. It seemed that Riou's actions had swayed the people into supporting him.

Despite that, they didn't spend the night in the village. Riou was restless, and ordered the galley back out into the river. They continued on, slowing only slightly for the darkness. Luckily, the two moons were both close to full, and provided good light to navigate by.

The next day saw them to Radat before noon. Flik noted, to his pleasure, that the refugees that had been here previously were now gone. Was that another bit of Shu's handiwork? The town itself seemed emptier than before. From the dockhands, they heard that more Highland patrols had been sighted on the east bank of the river. The war was indeed picking up.

Once past the sluice gates, the galley snaked its way through the tributaries of the Dunan Delta. Endless stretches of rice paddies bordered the water, fed by irrigation canals and tended by workers. They had been untouched when Kiba went through, but Flik worried that Luca would not be so merciful. Moreover, if those crops weren't harvested, a lot of people would starve.

That afternoon, they sailed out of the delta onto the lake and turned west, heading for Dunan Castle. When the sun set, they beached the galley on the south shore for the night. As Flik took his turn for the watch, he couldn't help but gaze back to the east. Somewhere in that direction, back in East Muse, Luca Blight and his army prowled, marching ever closer. He couldn't shake the feeling that the decisive battles of the war were approaching with Luca. Either the wolf would fall in battle, or he would devour them all.

They were underway again as soon as there was enough light to sail by. Before they reached Kuskus, galleys from Dunan Castle had arrived to escort them on the last leg. Viktor and Flik joined Riou and Nanami at the prow, straining to see their headquarters as it came into view. Like the others, Flik was eager to be returning home. It didn't even surprise him that he thought of Dunan that way. This was where he was most comfortable, this was where he belonged. The trip to the Republic had taught him that.

Eventually, the cliffs and castle appeared out of the haze of afternoon. Seeing it again, Flik was struck by how much they'd accomplished in only a few months. The castle was no longer a wreck, but an imposing fortress with a rapidly expanding city sprawling all around it. The population increase had already overtaken the original walls of North Window and was subsuming the surrounding villages. If this continued, soon they would be the suburbs of a new metropolis.

But only if they could win the war. Only if they could prevent Luca Blight from destroying it all first.

The harbor was packed with ships unloading soldiers and supplies from the south. As Riou's galley came into berth, the crowd gave a hearty cheer. Riou smiled and waved to them as he descended the gangplank, then Apple and Ridley guided him into the castle. Viktor and Flik followed, trying not to fall behind in the crush of people.

Shu, as usual, awaited them in the great hall. There were others there as well- Valeria and Kasumi, Kiba and Klaus, Fitcher, Freed, and Teresa. Shu inclined his head to Riou, saying, "Lord Riou, I'm relieved to see you return to us as hale as ever. Moreover, you were successful in forming an alliance with the Toran Republic."

Valeria bowed to Shu. "I'm Valeria, commander of our expeditionary forces. President Lepant has placed us under your command for the duration of the war. It will be our honor to help you achieve victory."

Kasumi's nod was much less formal. "My name is Kasumi, vice-chieftain of the Rokkaku ninja. We will assist you as well."

"You know, we're going to depend on you two a lot," Viktor declared.

"Yes, we're all grateful," Flik added. "We can finally match the Highland Army soldier for soldier." As he said those words, something in Shu's expression made him regret them immediately. With a slight movement of one hand, the strategist signaled Apple.

Apple didn't look happy either. "I didn't want to sour your mood earlier, but the situation has changed. Our spies indicate the Luca Blight has finished reorganizing the Highland Army, and he's added reinforcements. We will be facing three full armies from Highland."

"Wait," Flik interrupted. "That doesn't make any sense. We defeated the Third Army less than a month ago."

"Highland has plenty of reserves," Apple replied. "Luca Blight is leading the First Army, the White Wolves. Jowy Blight is leading the Third Army, reconstituted from survivors of the last battle and the new additions. Plus, there is also the Fourth Army, Solon Jhee's old units, now under the command of Culgan."

"That's a lot of soldiers," Viktor muttered.

"There's more," Apple conceded, her voice taking on a tone of dread. "We've also heard rumors of a detachment from Harmonia. In total, we expect a force of at least fifty thousand soldiers."

"So much for equal terms," Flik said.

"What do you suppose Harmonia's aid consists of?" Fitcher asked, looking towards Kiba and Klaus. "The Southern Regional Army or the Regular Army?"

Klaus shook his head. "Whatever help they receive will not come cheaply, even if they are allies. Still, if I were Luca Blight, I'd ask for the best, the Regular Army. I wonder what he had to give up in return?"

"It's not like Luca to call for help," Kiba growled. "He's not the sort to acknowledge any weakness."

"You're correct," Shu responded. "I suspect that the prime mover in this agreement was none other than Leon Silverberg. He understood that we would seek allies, and so brought his own into the conflict."

"Was everything wasted?" Nanami asked. "How can we win if the enemy keeps countering all of our moves?"

"Your trip wasn't wasted," Shu answered. "The addition of the Republic's soldiers, not to mention their enthusiastic volunteers, has raised the morale of our soldiers significantly. Not only that, but we've established a relationship that will help us far into the future. These are no small accomplishments."

"You have a plan to deal with the Harmonians?" Riou asked.

"I have a theory," Shu mused. "But it will be difficult to convince him to go along with it."

"Convince who?" Nanami wondered, voicing Flik's question perfectly.

"Never mind," Shu said. "Lord Riou, I'm sure you're exhausted from your journey. No good will come of worrying over things that cannot be controlled. For now, rest. We can make plans tomorrow."


	60. Chapter 60 A Minor Crisis

**Chapter 60 – A Minor Crisis**

Upon arriving at his room, Flik was presented with a minor crisis. Someone had placed a letter on his bed. When he read the contents, the writer's identity became obvious:

_My Dearest Lord Flik,_

_How I have longed for the hour of your return, my noble knight. I love thee as a bee loves a flower. As the butterfly struggles from its cocoon to embrace the sunlight, so I long to embrace you. Even in this unnatural separation, I could not keep thy noble visage out of my mind. Truly, my lord, your beauty is like that of the distant stars in the night's sky._

_But now, you have returned! Do not absent thyself from this fair maiden. Conqueror of my love, I await thee reclined upon my couch, clad in the raiment of the night. Let us make a celebration of this lull between the storms of war._

_Thy Sweet Maiden,  
Nina_

What the hell?

Flik scanned the letter again, trying to figure out exactly what was meant. It was an invitation, that much was certain. Then, "raiment of the night" was probably-

He began to blush, but it quickly turned to annoyance. He crumpled the paper and hurled it aside. Nina simply didn't tempt him, regardless of what she was offering. With that thought in mind, Flik unclipped his cloak in preparation for bed. For the briefest of moments, he pondered how long she might wait for him to arrive. An hour? Two? Might she possibly spend the whole night waiting for him, clad in the "raiment of the night," with her door unlocked?

He sighed and put his cloak back on. However much Nina irritated him, he wasn't going to leave her vulnerable for the whole night. He'd just have to stand guard over her door so that no one else could enter in his place. Taking determined steps, he set out into the hall, heading towards her room.

A minute later, Flik realized he had no idea where that was. He paused in the middle of the corridor and thought feverishly. If he didn't know where Nina's room was, he'd have to find somebody who did know. But he couldn't ask just anyone. Leona and Barbara would take it the wrong way. Viktor was right out. He needed someone who knew, but had the professional demeanor not to blab. There was only one person who fit those qualifications.

Before long, he was knocking on the correct door. "Enter," said the male voice from the room beyond. Flik did so, careful to duck around the potted plant that hung immediately inside the room. Now that he had a clear view of everything, he started in surprise.

"Apple, what're you doing here?"

Apple glanced up, looking irked at the interruption. "Is it that unusual for me to be here? I am a strategist, after all."

She and Shu were sitting across from each other, staring at a spread of papers on the box that Shu used as a table. "Is there something you desired to ask me?" Shu spoke. "Surely you didn't come here to exchange pleasantries?"

This was unexpected. Flik looked from Shu to Apple and back again. He didn't want Apple to hear. "I…it's not important."

Shu sighed. "Even trivialities can turn into critical problems if left unattended. You've come here because you thought something merited my consideration."

Flik gulped. "Yeah. It's about Nina." He quickly explained the note she'd left him. Apple sniffed disapprovingly.

"And…what do you want to know?" Shu continued, with maybe a hint of a smirk on his face.

Flik mustered his courage. "I need to know where her room is."

"What?" That was Apple, who now looked outraged.

Shu merely nodded. "You want to guard her honor. That's very romantic, but not the type of romance that she's looking for, I'm sure."

Apple's breathing began to return to regular levels, regular enough that she could argue, at least. "Guarding her honor isn't a job for you. When I'm finished here, I'll have a little talk with her. She won't be pestering you anymore."

"That's not going to work," Shu replied.

Apple swung around the glare at Shu. "How do you know it won't work? Now you think you're the expert on teenage girls as well?"

"No." He shrugged. "But I am an expert on human nature. All you're going to do is make her desire Flik more."

Flik decided he didn't want to be in the line of fire if this turned into a full argument. Besides, Apple said she would deal with it. "I'll just go back to bed," he announced, backing around the plant and out the door. As he walked down the hall towards his own room, he tried to reassure himself that he wasn't running from responsibility.

Once he was in his bed, Flik waited for sounds of an impending calamity, like Nina knocking furiously at his door. He was still waiting when he fell asleep. The next morning, he woke refreshed and undisturbed. After getting dressed and shaving, he opened the door and looked out into the hall. The residents gave him odd looks, but Nina wasn't standing there, demanding answers. Maybe Apple had diffused the situation?

Flik took his breakfast at Hai Yo's, alongside his senior sergeants. As much as anything, he wanted to show them that he cared about the unit, despite being away on missions. He listened carefully to the inevitable list of problems that each man had. Of course, there was also good news, as well.

"We're up to six hundred men," Rossgard announced. "We were wondering what you wanted to do about that. Until now, we've simply been adding squads to our companies. I suppose that could continue, but the standard procedure would be to create a new company."

"Or you could give us promotions," Terrance quipped.

Flik nodded. The problem wasn't merely one of rank. If the individual companies got too large, they would become difficult for the senior sergeants to command in battle. Of course, the larger the mounted archers grew, the more difficult it would be for him to command them all. "For now we'll keep the structure as it is. However, I want each of you to recommend a candidate for promotion to senior sergeant. There's no doubt that we'll have to reorganize pretty soon."

Flik was about to change the subject when he heard someone collapse behind him. All of the conversation in the restaurant suddenly stopped, except for a few gasps. He turned around and his heart skipped when he saw the victim. It was Barbara who had collapsed out of her chair, her face pale, her eyes closed.

Before he knew it, Flik had hurdled the nearest table, knocking people off-balance to get to Barbara. He knelt down next to her, searching her neck for a pulse. Due to her girth, it was difficult to find, but it was there, weak and intermittent. "What happened?" he shouted. "Where's Hai Yo?" Only then did he look up and note that Riou and Nanami were there next to him.

Meanwhile, Hai Yo had appeared. He was confronting another chef, a man dressed in an outfit of bright yellow. "What is the meaning of this, Ryuki? What have you done to Barbara?"

Ryuki appeared older than Hai Yo but other than that was nondescript. He gave a mirthless laugh and said, "This is your fault, Hai Yo. You knew what would happen when you defied the Black Dragon Clan. This woman has been poisoned by one of my own blends, extracted from ten species of spiders found in the nameless lands north of Zexen. She will die this very day, unless my antidote is given to her. Now Hai Yo, return what you have stolen, and I shall save her life."

Amazingly, Hai Yo shook his head. "I…won't give it to you."

Flik snapped to his feet. "Are you mad? Barbara's life is in danger. Nothing is more important than that."

Hai Yo gulped, but stood his ground. "I can't do it. Not even to save a life." Flik almost lunged at the army chef, but a touch from Riou caused him to hesitate. Ryuki was speaking again.

"You always were self-absorbed. Do you think yourself some kind of hero? Here's what we'll do. I challenge you under the rules of the Black Dragon Clan. Should you win, I'll give you the antidote. Should I win, you must return what you've stolen. Accept my challenge, Hai Yo, or show yourself to be a coward, now and forever."

Hai Yo balled his fists. "It's the clan that's cowardly, poisoning an innocent to draw me out. Fine, I accept your challenge, Ryuki!"

Flik glared at both chefs. This whole battle felt meaningless, especially when it was Barbara's life on the line. He got the senior sergeants together. Jerrim was sent off to find and inform Viktor. The other three helped Flik fashion a litter out of a tabletop and carried Barbara to Huan's infirmary.

When they arrived, Huan was finishing up setting a splint on the arm of an injured soldier. The doctor glanced once at Barbara, frowned, and motioned Flik to carry her to a spare examining table. In a moment, he was beside Flik, feeling for Barbara's pulse. "There don't appear to be any external injuries. What happened here?"

"Poison."

"How exactly did it enter her body?"

"It must've been something she ate. The culprit is a chef."

"This is extremely fast acting for an oral poison." He fingered his chin thoughtfully and studied Barbara some more.

Flik tried to keep the irritation from his voice. "And?"

"An emetic would be very risky at this point. I need to know more about the toxin. Is the culprit in custody?"

The image of the two opposing chefs hovering over bubbling pots popped into Flik's head. "Sort of."

"Barbara! Where is Barbara?" Viktor crashed through one of the privacy partitions, shouting at the top of his lungs, drowning out Huan's response. When he saw Barbara on the table, he stopped cold, color draining from his face. "Flik, what's wrong with her? Will she be okay?" Flik quickly explained the situation, as much for Huan's benefit as for Viktor's.

"Are they insane?" Viktor yelled, when Flik was finished. "Come on, we'll go up there and beat the antidote out of this coward!"

"I don't think you want to do that," Huan answered. "If that antidote is damaged, we lose our best hope for saving Barbara. For now, we should be patient and wait for the outcome of the contest."

The waiting was difficult for both Viktor and Flik. They paced around the limited area, nearly colliding on several occasions. Suddenly, Flik heard the sound of someone running towards the infirmary. He brought his head up in time to see Nanami enter, her face pale. She seemed on the verge of tears.

"What happened?" Viktor snapped.

"It's horrible," Nanami whispered. Flik felt his stomach lurch.

Huan took a few steps forward. "Do we have the antidote?"

The question appeared to surprise Nanami. "Oh, yes, we do. Here it is." She passed a small vial of clear liquid to the doctor.

Before he could give the treatment to Barbara, there were more voices from outside the infirmary. "Doctor Huan! Doctor Huan! We've got an emergency patient here!"

A pair of soldiers were bearing in the form of Ryuki. Nanami turned away, but Flik walked over to get a better look. He immediately regretted that. In defeat, the chef had turned a blade against himself, plunging it into his own neck. Blood was still flowing from the wound, staining his yellow coat and dribbling down onto the floor. The sight was unnerving to Flik, even though he'd seen worse in battle.

Huan shook his head. "There's no saving this one. May the Runes have mercy on his soul. Now, let's administer this antidote." He took the vial over to Barbara, pulled off the stopper, and let the liquid dribble into her mouth. Then he massaged her throat to get her to swallow.

"Well, why doesn't she wake?" Viktor asked, when the doctor finished.

"Patience," Huan replied. "It may take some time for the antidote to purge the poison."

While they waited, others began to arrive at the infirmary: Riou and Leona among many others from the old mercenary fort. Eventually the area became so crowded that Huan had to forbid anyone else from trying to get in. After several tense hours, Barbara suddenly coughed, groaned, and opened her eyes.

"That was the worst sashimi I've ever had." Then Viktor rushed in to hug her on the examining table. "Off, you great lug! You'll be the death of me. Where am I, anyway?"

When the explanations were finished, and Viktor stopped crying, Huan insisted that everyone leave so that Barbara could finish recovering. In the meantime, Shu called for a meeting in the great hall to decide what do with Hai Yo.

"I'm sorry!" Hai Yo said miserably, holding his chef's hat in his hands. "I didn't think something like this would happen."

"What the hell is this about?" Viktor shouted. "Barbara almost died today! I want some answers." Hai Yo shrank back from Viktor's voice.

"Let's not yell at each other," Riou said. "We're here to figure out how to keep this from happening again."

Shu stood calmly on the dais, looking at Hai Yo. "Let's establish some facts. First, this Ryuki said that you are part of the Black Dragon Clan. Second, he stated that you've done something to make the Clan angry with you. I assume that both statements are correct?" Hai Yo nodded.

A question popped into Flik's head. "What exactly is the Black Dragon Clan? Don't tell me it's a cooking club?"

"It's much more than that," Hai Yo answered. "It's a system of learning from different masters, of honing your skills, and then teaching the next generation of apprentices."

"And apparently being willing to poison for political goals," Viktor added.

"Enough," Shu responded. "Let's get back to the matter at hand. Hai Yo, I'm not interested in whatever problems you have with the Clan, but it does concern me when that spills over and affects the New State Army."

Nanami rallied to Hai Yo's defense. "That's not fair. It's not his fault that Barbara was poisoned."

"I beg to differ," Shu argued. "It was not his intention, but the poisoning is his fault." He turned his attention back to the chef. "You hid your identity from us and took advantage of our hospitality, all the while hoping that your former associates wouldn't catch up to you."

"I won't deny it," Hai Yo said. "However, it's terribly important that the Black Dragon Clan not be allowed to abuse what I've stolen. If you want me to leave, I'll leave."

"No." This was from Nanami. "We don't throw out people in trouble, right brother?"

"Of course not. We should try to help him."

Shu closed his eyes and sighed slightly. "No doubt we should, but we must also look after the interests of the army. Today it was Barbara, but tomorrow it might be one of our generals, like Viktor or Flik."

Actually, if it were a choice between him or Barbara, Flik knew he'd gladly accept that danger. He was used to risking his life every time he was on the battlefield. He was also certain that Viktor felt the same way.

Meanwhile, Riou was speaking. "Is there any way we can reduce that risk and keep Hai Yo here? Why did Ryuki poison Barbara to begin with?"

"He obviously knew that poisoning Barbara would force me to reveal who I was," Hai Yo replied. "He knew I'd be forced to accept the challenge."

"Then you'll have to advertise who you are," Shu said. "No more hiding behind false pretenses."

"You're allowing him to stay?" Flik asked. Hai Yo, realizing that he would be permitted to remain, broke out in a grateful smile.

Nanami grabbed Shu in a fierce hug. "I knew you weren't a meanie!"

Shu appeared nonplused by the affection. "I didn't say that we would support him in his struggle. Hai Yo, if you want to stay, you must accept all the challenges from now on. Moreover, I will make it very clear that any judges from our ranks will be impartial."

"I understand, and I won't lose any of the challenges."

Shu managed to pull Nanami's arms off of him. "Excellent. If what you say is true, I hope that you are up to the test."

There was a commotion from the entrance of the hall, causing both Viktor and Flik to reach for their swords. A messenger ran into the room, breathing heavily. "What's this?" Shu asked, for once looking annoyed. "Report!"

"Lord Riou, Lord Strategist, we've received word that the Highland Army has appeared before Radat. The militia has dropped the bridge over the sluice gate, but it's only a matter of time before the enemy gets across the river and the town falls."

"It's time to end this," Riou answered. "Shu, we must deploy the army."

"I'm in agreement." Shu turned to the messenger. "Gather the other generals at once."

In under half an hour, the commanders of the New State Army had assembled. There were no voices in dissent to marching out and fighting Luca Blight; however, it was too late to begin the march on this day. Instead, Shu ordered the units to prepare for departure at dawn tomorrow. Looking around the room, Flik saw excitement in the faces of his compatriots. They were eager to begin the decisive campaign. Only Nanami appeared apprehensive.

When the briefing was finished, Viktor and Flik went down to Leona's. The mood was subdued in the bar. With the war looming and Barbara still conspicuously absent, many of the patrons were drinking themselves into a stupor. Viktor immediately sat down and started ordering up drinks. After a while, Flik stopped trying to match him.

"You all right?" Flik asked. "I don't want to have to carry you up to your bed."

"What're you talking about? You're the lightweight." Viktor took a pull on his mug. He was up into the double digits, though Flik had stopped counting. "I know how to hold my liquor."

"Maybe. You just don't want to do anything stupid right before a campaign, that's all."

"I know, I know." Viktor shook his head. "Damn, today was a tough day. Why'd Barbara have to be the one to get hurt?"

Flik was shocked by the display of introspection from his friend. Normally, Viktor simply bulled his way over problems. "She'll be okay." Flik tired to sound reassuring. "That's what's important in the end, isn't it?"

Viktor looked down at his mug. "Hell, when I charge into battle, I don't give my own death a second thought, but thinking about the death of one of my friends- that scares me. I don't want to lose any more important people in my life. I've already lost too many."

"We all have," Flik answered quietly.

Viktor started to raise his drink, then set it back down on the table. "I must be getting old," he grumbled. "Can't take my beer like I could when I was younger." He gave a lopsided grin. "Besides, I couldn't let you see me when I'm drunk. I get weepy, and nothing's worse than a weepy drunk."

"You don't get weepy." Flik laughed. "You start to sing. I should know, I've heard it."

"Not true," Viktor replied. "I'm never drunk when I sing."

"You're not?" Flik asked. "But your voice…it's so terrible. I'd always assumed…"

Viktor put on a wounded expression. "I don't believe this. My own 'so-called' friend insults me so grievously. What's this world coming to?" He got up from his chair. "Now I'll have to go to bed. It'll take me all night to get over those hurtful words."

Flik smiled. "You probably won't remember them in the morning. But you're right. Now is the time for sleep."

The two men left the bar, climbing the stairs to their respective rooms. When Flik arrived in his room, he quickly prepared for bed, finally blowing out his candle and lying down to sleep. Instead, his mind brought him images of battle. He tossed and turned, trying to find a comfortable position. He even kicked off his blanket, but nothing helped. He found himself mentally going over his mistakes in previous battles. The giant rose of Scarleticia Castle kept appearing in his head.

Finally, despairing of rest, Flik got up and left the room, searching for some location that would be more relaxing. One place came to mind. Thus, he found himself climbing the stairs up to the top of the highest tower. He emerged onto the landing, out into the humid night air. A great layer of cloud had wiped the stars from the night sky and occluded the two moons, reducing their lights to faint hazes. He immediately began to perspire.

Flik leaned back against the sloped roof of the tower and closed his eyes, listening. The sound of the crashing waves was oddly soothing. A distant rumble of thunder intruded, distinct over the noise of the water. He sighed, wondering why he always came up here before the start of a campaign. What was he trying to escape?

Soft steps on the stairs ended his musings. He opened his eyes to see Nina vault the final steps. Seeing the expectation in her eyes, Flik suddenly recalled the letter from last night. Now, breathing heavily from the climb, she blocked his only route of escape short of leaping into the abyss. Perhaps if he didn't say anything, she'd grow bored and leave?

No such luck. "Sir Flik?"

He turned away from her, studying the shapes of houses below. She didn't leave. "What do you want?" he asked brusquely.

He couldn't see the reaction to his tone, but she was more hesitant as she asked, "What are you doing up here, Sir Flik? Everyone else is either asleep or passed out. Are you having trouble sleeping?"

The concern in her voice made him face her again. She was looking up at him with sad eyes. He faked a smiled and answered flippantly, "It's nothing much. I always have lots of memories from my past battles the night before the start of a campaign. That's all."

"I'm jealous of you," Nina replied. "You've done so many important things in your life. I've only lived for sixteen years and I've been a kid for at least six of them. I want the chance to do something great too."

Flik snorted. "Don't be in such a rush to finish childhood."

"Tell me what you're thinking about," Nina ordered.

Her prying was becoming annoying again. He tried to shrug casually. "Different things, that's all."

"Different things?" Nina frowned. "Like what? Like your home? Or the future? Or about the coming battles?"

"None of your business, brat."

Even in the weak light, Flik could see that his retort had hurt. "You're terrible! I get it, you were thinking about your lost love."

He faced away quickly, lest she see him wince. All he wanted was for this to end now. He tried the silent treatment once more, hoping it would drive her away. He waited as the minutes passed, but Nina didn't move. She also didn't say anything.

Fine. He hated to abandon the field, but he wasn't going to be cornered up here all night by a little girl. He turned and walked towards the stairs, also towards Nina.

At the closest point, she reached out to grab his arm. "Wait a moment, please."

"You should get some sleep," Flik commanded. He pushed her hand off. "It's not good to stay up all night." With that, he fled down the stairs, returning to his room. Back in his bed, he still couldn't find rest.

Eventually, the thunder drew closer and it began to storm.


	61. Chapter 61 The Earth Roared

**Chapter 61- The Earth Roared**

The New State Army assembled for march at the sun's rising. The rains had ended, leaving everything wreathed in a fine mist of steam. As Flik looked around, he could see that the last preparations were underway. A wagon full of Fire Spears was creaking towards his men, driven by Tsai. There was a girl with a blue robe and beige pants sitting beside him. Flik immediately saw the family resemblance between the two of them.

Tsai brought the wagon to halt and said, "Sir Flik, the Fire Spears are prepared. There are three hundred and twenty remaining."

Flik examined the wagon closely. The visual inspection confirmed that there were fewer spears than previously. "That few? What's happening to them, Tsai?"

"They are like any other tool that has been crafted; they wear down and break over time. You must take care with them, Flik. My skills are sufficient to maintain them, but we'd need a factory to make new ones."

Flik knew that a good deal of his unit's strength depended on the Fire Spears. Still, there was no use complaining to Tsai about that. He smiled and replied, "Thank you for taking care of them. We'd be much worse off without them."

"Hopefully, they will help put an end to this war. That's the only reason I can stomach my work. If you'll excuse me, Sir Flik, but I must make my own preparations for the upcoming battle." He turned to the girl next to him. "Tomo dear, I'm grateful for your help on the spears, but now you must return to the castle. I don't want you to have any part in what's going to happen."

Tomo shook her head vehemently. "What about you, Father? What would Mother think if you were killed on some battlefield? Why don't you ever come home to reconcile with her?"

Tsai tried to look severe, but failed. "Darling, now is not the time for this discussion."

"When is the time, then? When are you two going to make up?"

Tsai cast an embarrassed glance at Flik, then returned to his conversation with his daughter. "Can this wait for some better time? Tomo, there are things that your father needs to do."

"You spend so much time with your spears," Tomo shouted. "Why can't you spend even a little with your family? What if you die and I never see you again?"

"Hopefully when I return, the war will be over," Tsai answered. "We'll have lots of time to talk about things then."

"That'd better be a promise," Tomo demanded.

"I promise." Tomo seemed pleased by this answer and consented to jump down from the wagon and head back for the castle. Tsai glanced once at Flik and said, "A man is both blessed and cursed to have a daughter. She never fails to get her way in the end."

Tsai left to take his position in the march. When everything was ready, the army began to move. Like before, Flik had been assigned the lead position, responsible for scouting ahead of the main body. Soon his mounted archers had fanned out down the road and into the surrounding countryside.

The mist of early morning quickly burned away, replaced by scorching heat. Flik had prepared several extra water canteens, yet found himself rationing the liquid before noon. By that time, he'd already received several reports of heatstroke from his men. Behind him, he could see the huge column of dust the army was kicking up. Undoubtedly, there'd be more attrition back there.

Even so, they kept up a steady pace and camped outside the walls of South Window. Stragglers wandered into the lines all throughout the night, some collapsing of exhaustion before finding their units. In the morning, reports from the Winghorde said that the Highland Army was still on the east bank of the Dunan River, and that Radat remained free. Another grueling march would be required to get the New State Army to the beleaguered town, hopefully before it fell.

Again Flik led his cavalry out in the early morning. He had forty fewer riders than the previous day, all men who were simply too exhausted to keep up. He could only hope that he wouldn't lose that many today. He didn't get any luck with the heat, which returned with oppressive force. Riding through the countryside, Flik got the impression that the whole land was suffering from the weather. The crops and orchards of the great manors appeared to be wilting. In those conditions, one spark might be enough to set off an inferno.

In the afternoon, Flik and his men arrived at the site of the battle one month ago, overlooking the town of Radat. He could see Highland encampments running up and down the eastern shore of the river, but none on the South Window side. The bridge spanning the river had been torn down, and the wide water seemed to be holding the Highlanders up, for now.

He sent men back to report to Riou and Shu, then rode down into the town for a closer inspection. The streets were empty, but Flik did find the men of the town militia down by the river docks. They were preparing a number of fire barges, should the Highland Army attempt a crossing.

The captain of the militia walked with Flik a little apart from the rest of their men before confiding, "I don't think we can hold them long, nor do I have the men to adequately patrol all of the river. It's possible that some part of the enemy has already crossed, though I've found no evidence of it."

Flik nodded. "Is there anything else happening? Have the Highlanders sent any spies across?"

"No, nothing like that. However, we've noticed that the river level has fallen in the past couple of days. I don't know what it means. I can't imagine that the Highlanders could block all the estuaries of the Dunan Delta, could they?"

"I don't think so." But Flik wasn't as confident as his answer. He knew that Luca Blight wasn't the sort of general to sit still and waste an opportunity. Moreover, Luca now had the services of the great strategist Leon Silverberg. The light was low in the west, and Flik could see the enemy's encampment falling into the shadow. What scheme were those two planing in the darkness?

He left his men to camp in the town and rode Nightstar back up to where the New State Army was preparing to spend the night. As was typical, Riou and Shu were gathering the generals to discuss the upcoming battle. Flik quickly recounted his talk with the militia in Radat.

"There is no doubt that the enemy is already across the river," Shu surmised. "The only questions are the place of the crossing and the number of soldiers that have crossed."

"We have to find them and smash them," Viktor replied. There were murmurs of assent from the generals.

"The terrain does not work to our advantage," Shu answered. "To the north of Radat, we've got both marshes and woodlands. To the south, the land grows increasingly rough. Moreover, once we find their crossing point, we'll have to leave a force to cover Radat, in case the enemy's move is merely a feint."

"That's a lot of ground to cover," Freed said. "Can we afford to spread the army out that much searching for them?"

Shu nodded. "It is a matter of applying the correct generals to the correct tasks. We may be outnumbered, but if we can concentrate against one part of the enemy, we will have the advantage. Now" -he picked up a pointer- "I would like you to regard the bluffs south of Radat. They offer a natural defensive position overlooking both the river and the city. I believe it would be best to occupy those heights with a detachment of infantry. Kiba-"

"I will do it," Ridley interrupted, taking a few steps towards Shu and Riou. "I beg the honor, for me and my kobolds."

A slight frown appeared on Shu's face. "I cannot assent to that, Lord Ridley."

The kobold general growled, baring his fangs. "Do you not trust me to hold such a vital position? You doubt my ability?"

"I don't doubt your ability or dedication, General." Shu sighed, then added, "I simply believe that you are best suited to other tasks."

Ridley turned to Riou. "Please, Lord Riou, let us kobolds hold the van. In the last battle, we were asked to dishonorably turn our backs to the enemy and run. I understand why that was necessary. Now, I wish for my men to hold the forward position. Let us prove our valor to the whole army."

"Lord Shu, let Ridley have that position," Riou responded. "He will certainly be motivated to hold it."

"I agree," Kiba said. "General Ridley is one of the finest commanders in the whole of our army. There's no reason to refuse him."

"I see that I won't have my way with this," Shu conceded, tapping his foot. "Very well, General Ridley, I order you to take the bluffs south of Radat and hold them against any Highland crossing. Do not hesitate to call for reinforcements should the enemy come against you in force. Now then, let us move on to the rest of the assignments."

Shu quickly went over the other positions he wanted scouted. Flik found himself given the task of riding north along the edge of the forest to make sure that no Highland units were flanking the New State Army. As he listened to the briefing, his eyes darted back to the commander of the kobolds. Flik was no expert at reading kobold faces, but even he could see the pride in General Ridley's smile.

When the briefing was finished, Flik risked the darkness to ride back to his men in town. He spent the night in fitful rest, bothered in part by the heat and mosquitoes, but mostly by the threat from Highland. After a while, he got up and paced down to the smashed sluice gate, staring out over the water. The light from the nearly full Blue Moon reflected off the river. He couldn't see anything from the far bank.

Before dawn, he and his men were riding west out of Radat, preparing to follow the woods north. When the sun came up, Flik was in the rolling pasturelands, scanning the forest and plains for signs of intruders. There was plenty of birdsong, but little else that he could hear, or see.

"Looks to be a quiet day," Sergeant Tarrance said.

"It's still too early," Flik replied. "Besides, I'd rather find the enemy. At least we'd know what they're doing if that happened."

"I hope someone else finds them first. I'd rather not have our unit chewed up this time."

Flik shrugged. "You shouldn't have joined the mercenaries if you wanted a long life expectancy."

"Better this than infantry. You've always got a chance if you've got a horse."

"I'm not disagreeing," Flik said, patting Nightstar's mane.

Suddenly, the earth roared, rocking back and forth under Nightstar's hooves. The shaking lasted only a few seconds, but staying atop his horse commanded all of his attention during that moment.

When he recovered his wits, the first thing Flik heard was Tarrance yelling, "What the hell?" His senior sergeant was all but drowned out by a cacophony of upset birds. A great flock of them was scattering out of the treetops, obscuring the rising sun.

Flik tried to shout commands, but another tremor rattled the ground, causing the trees to sway back and forth. Nightstar whinnied and reared, forcing Flik to hang on for dear life. She finally settled, but was hardly calm, with her ears pinned back. He was lucky; many of his men were on the ground, some with broken limbs. There was a giant pillar of dust forming back to the south, near Radat. He knew that was where the trouble would be.

A blast of horns startled Flik. Cavalrymen, in the blue and white of Highland, were riding out of the forest, heading straight for his mercenaries. Flik's reaction was instinctive.

"Fire Spears, attack!" He pointed to the onrushing enemy with his blade. The men around him, hearing his orders, recovered their composure and turned their Fire Spears on the Highlanders. Individual gouts of flame reached out for the enemy, snatching at those men and horses that couldn't avoid them, igniting the dry grass, and curling up against the canopy of the forest.

It wasn't enough. There hadn't been enough time to form a solid wall of fire, and now Flik could see the enemy pouring through the gaps. More cavalry and infantry were streaming out of the woods south of him, cutting his men off from the rest of the army. This was no place to make a stand against overwhelming numbers.

"Fall back!" Flik ordered. "Fall back, follow me!" He hated the command, because it would force him to leave the severely wounded behind.

The mercenaries struggled to get free from the fighting. They'd been disorganized by the two quakes and had fallen out of company order. Small clumps of mounted archers galloped towards the west, away from the Highland Army. Flik turned Nightstar towards the largest group of men, about seventy, where he found his most senior sergeant in command.

"Rossgard, we must act as rearguard, or the enemy will scatter us all over the plains."

"I agree," the sergeant replied somberly.

Highland cavalry was still pursuing them. Flik let one group get close, then had the men turn and use the Fire Spears, followed by a volley of arrows. Fire consumed the foremost of the enemy, and the men behind faltered, for a moment. Flik didn't linger over his triumph, for he could see more Highlanders on either flank. He led his ragged little group back to the west.

Several more times he stopped to launch vicious counterattacks, trying to keep the Highlanders from getting around to cut of his retreat. He left smoke from grassfires in his wake, along with corpses from both sides. More of his men rallied to Flik's side, drawn by the stability of command. Meanwhile, Flik caught glimpses of the greater battle that he was a part of. Jeane's lightning flashed out of the cloudless sky to the south, followed by the white dome of Riou's Shield Rune.

More and more Highland infantry were marching out of the forest behind Flik, filling the gap between his men and the rest of the New State Army. He realized that this was no localized ambush, but that he was facing a large part of the Highland Army. He also knew that he had to find some way to get back to the main army, or he'd be overwhelmed.

"This way!" he shouted, turning Nightstar to the left, to the south. He was going to have to cut across the path of his pursuers, but his men could break free if they got past. "Ready Fire Spears!"

Sweat dribbled into Flik's eyes. He shook his head, hearing Nightstar's labored breathing in counterpoint to his own. All around him, he could see men and horses tiring rapidly. Ahead was a group of Highlanders, charging towards him, attempting to deny the way.

"Short burst, Fire Spears!" An uneven wave of fire raced ahead of Flik and his men. Though some of the Highlanders were caught under the flame, it didn't deter the greater number of them. Flik's throat felt dry, even as sweat rolled off his cheeks and chin. "Ride through!" he rasped. "Ride through and don't look back!" He drew his blade, focusing on the enemy as they drew near.

He almost died by the first sword. All Flik saw was a flash of reflected sunlight, but he parried automatically, metal clanging against metal. Nightstar whinnied furiously, and Flik tried to recover his wits. Had he nearly blacked out? There was no time for further thought, as there were men and horses all around him. Of her own volition, Nightstar kept galloping forward.

Another Highlander pressed close. Flik slashed out, his sword slicing through the two cheeks of a bearded soldier's face. A spear crunched against Flik's shield. He grunted, shrugging the weapon off, and continued riding. He pressed through a gap in the fighting, heading for the open plains.

"What's this?" a voice taunted. "Do you run so easily, Blue Lightning?" A rider blocked Flik's way. A rider with short silver hair, a black coat, and white cape. Culgan.

Their swords met, grinding and screeching together. "You'd flee too," Flik answered. He could see the first of his men breaking through to the other side of the Highland formation.

Both men were winded. Culgan tried to muscle Flik's sword aside. Flik hung on grimly. "You should've listened to me in South Window," Culgan said. "Today I will run you down and drag you before Luca Blight."

"You didn't last time." Flik gathered himself and called on his lightning rune. He was rewarded by blurred vision, a sign that he was more exhausted than anticipated. He hardly saw the burst of lightning that flared out of the rune. All he was truly aware of was the fact that Nightstar was running free again.

Flik nearly collapsed on Nightstar's neck. He had the terrible urge to wretch, but forced himself to sit back up in the saddle.

"You all right, commander?"

Flik could see a blurry image of Rossgard riding next to him. He nodded, unsure of his voice, then craned around to look to the rear. The only way he was able to distinguish between his own men and the Highlanders was that the enemy appeared as an indistinct mass of blue.

"Where's our army?" Flik gasped.

"Didn't hear you," Rossgard shouted back. How could the man still have his voice?

Nightstar's gait began to break down, rattling Flik's teeth in his mouth. Rossgard pulled ahead momentarily, then turned back. "Form on the commander!" he ordered. "Prepare to defend the commander!"

Amazingly, the mercenaries did. "No," Flik whispered. He shook his head for emphasis.

"Commander, take my horse," Rossgard offered. "He's still got a little left in him." Through a haze of exhaustion, Flik saw the senior sergeant dismount. Flik stubbornly remained on Nightstar. He wasn't about to trade places to save his own life.

Two more figures approached on horseback: Tengaar and Hix. Flik could see streaks of sweat and dirt on Hix's face. "Hold on just a little longer," the youth called out. "I can see reinforcements on the way!"

Flik's vision began to tunnel. "All right," Rossgard replied, remounting his own horse. He turned away from Flik, shouting to the men, "Fire Spears, ready!" Flik slumped down onto Nightstar's mane, smelling her sweat, even as the fire's roar filled his hearing. Then everything went silent and black.

Flik jerked awake, just as somebody said, "Here, take this." A canteen was pressed into his mouth, and he reflexively swallowed water. It revived him, a little, though he had a pounding headache. "What happened?" he croaked.

"Just a touch of sunstroke, I think." The voice belonged to Rossgard. "Stay down for the moment, you'll want to rest for a bit. You'll also want more water."

Flik was lying on the ground, staring up at the cloudless blue sky. "I meant with the battle."

"The Matilda Knights saved our asses. They've driven off the Highlanders for now. Can you stand? We've got to get moving soon. The army's retreating."

Those words hit Flik in the gut. He'd hoped to be done with retreating. "Is it because they got around us?" he asked.

"Something happened up front, but I don't know more than that."

Time passed, and Flik could hear horses coming back. These were his own men, returning to check on their commander. Groaning, he struggled to his feet. He was lightheaded, but his vision was clear. "Is Nightstar okay?"

"In better condition than you, sir. She knows when to stop."

"If I had the strength, I'd write you up for insubordination," Flik mumbled, unsure if he was even heard.

Rossgard pointed to Flik's horse. Her mouth and chest were flecked by white foam, but she stood strongly. When Flik staggered over, he could feel heat radiating off her. He rubbed his forehead. In the distance, he could see columns of smoke from fires raging on the grass. However, the pillar of dust over Radat was by far the largest of them all.

Flik needed help from Hix to actually mount his horse. Nightstar was only up to a walk. Very slowly, Flik and his remaining men made their way back to the main army. As Rossgard said, they were retreating, but the damage was less than Flik feared. For the most part, individual units were in formation, showing little sign of panic. The Matilda Knights had followed Flik back and settled into the rearguard. It was then that Flik first heard the rumor, though it wasn't confirmed until the army stopped for the night and the generals assembled. They were short one member.

Viktor pounded the table with his fists. "Damn, damn, damn!"

"At least we have visual confirmation that Ridley was captured and not killed," Shu said calmly.

"We will have to pray that Luca Blight shows him mercy," Teresa said, bowing her head.

"We have to organize a rescue," Viktor replied. Flik nodded in agreement, along with several other generals.

Apple shook her head. "You forget the situation. The enemy now occupies Radat, and they have a significant force poised north of us, on our flank. Not only that, but they have the services of a powerful earth mage from Harmonia, as was established in today's action."

"That would be Bishop Sasarai of Harmonia," Luc commented. Then he sneered. "I know him well. He's formidable, but nothing that I can't take care of."

Shu nodded. "I'll leave that in your hands, as we discussed."

"Wait," Flik interrupted. "What do you mean, 'you know him'?"

"I'm not going to tell _you_ that." Luc's voice suddenly sounded petulant. "I don't have to tell idiots about my past."

Flik gripped the edge of the table with his hands. "What the hell is that about? I just want to know why you're so confident!"

Viktor put a hand on Flik's shoulder. "Hey, let's not fight with kids, okay?"

Luc's sneer was back. "Yeah. You should be embarrassed, losing your temper like that. You might do something stupid on the battlefield again." Before Flik could retort, the wind mage teleported with a flash of light.

"Damn. I hate his superior attitude," Flik said.

"We should focus on the matter at hand," Shu commented. "Luca Blight has forced his way into South Window, and now we must stop him."

"He'll aim for South Window City next," Klaus said. "He has nearly three times our numbers, so he doesn't need to be tricky. We must plot a strategy to wear him down while conserving our soldiers. Retreating to more defensible ground would be prudent."

"A conventional strategy will only lead to our defeat," Shu countered. "The enemy strategist is Leon Silverberg. He is never one to lose an advantage due to caution. The Highland Army will undoubtedly press on quickly after this victory. It is my intention to use that aggression against them. We will attack!"


	62. Chapter 62 Face the Beast

**Chapter 62 – Face the Beast**

Shu's bold proclamation was met with stunned silence. Finally, Kiba asked the question that Flik was sure everyone was pondering. "You mean to pit our army against the entire Highland force?"

Instead of a curt reply, Shu chuckled, allowing a small smile onto his face. "Lord Riou, permit me to explain my strategy." The strategist's enthusiasm pulled everyone forward. Flik leaned towards Shu and Riou, waiting for the brilliant plan. Shu cleared his throat. "First, let me say that there's no way the New State Army, with little more than twenty thousand soldiers, can defeat the fifty thousand of Highland."

"That's just great," Viktor groused. "Are you saying we can't win?"

Shu dismissed Viktor's question with a wave of one hand. "Calm yourself. We will win without killing them. We will win by taking the head of Luca Blight."

"That would change the political situation in Highland," Klaus added, running his thumb across his cheek. "Despite the questions surrounding her birth, Princess Jillia would possess the remaining royal blood. It's well known that she doesn't favor her brother's policy of military aggression. There would be hope for a peaceful settlement if she took the throne. But," -he glanced sharply at Shu- "all of this hinges on being able to kill Luca Blight. We can't fail."

"We won't," Shu answered. He gestured towards the map. "The Matilda and Maximillian Knights will ride north to keep Culgan's Fourth Army from joining the battle. The Winghorde will provide support in this effort." Camus and Miklotov snapped smart salutes while Max bowed gingerly. "I've already explained to Luc that he must drive the Harmonians out of the coming battle." Flik thought he could imagine the absent mage's sneer.

"That leaves our main force of infantry and archers to face the White Wolves, who will inevitably lead the march on South Window." Shu pointed to a rise on the road, just west of their current location. "Riou and Kiba will anchor our position here, at the top of this hill. The rest of the army will deploy on either flank, below the crest. Gilbert and Valeria will be on the left, Humphrey and Viktor on the right. The archers and mages will be positioned behind the battle line with Freed as the infantry reserve."

Shu looked up from the map, glancing from general to general. "Our goal is capturing or killing Luca Blight in battle. All of your efforts must be focused on surrounding and eliminating his personal unit. Therefore, when the battle begins, I want Lords Riou and Kiba to begin a feigned retreat."

Flik had been studying the map intently. "I get it," he murmured. "You figure Luca will chase them right into the middle of our army."

"Indeed." Shu clasped his hands behind his back. "We don't have the power to defeat fifty thousand soldiers, but none of that matters if we surround Luca Blight with our twenty thousand. Victory will be ours."

"Father, you must be careful," Klaus admonished, rubbing his hands. "In Luca's eyes, you are a traitor. He won't hesitate to kill you."

"I'm not afraid," Kiba replied with a grim smile. "Let him come; I've been in combat longer than he's been alive."

"We will win," Riou assured them, his face betraying no doubt. "We'll win, and we'll rescue Ridley!" His words were met by enthusiastic clapping. Flik clapped as readily as the other generals. The situation was desperate, they had to fight, and they had to win.

"This briefing is adjourned," Shu announced. "Rest now, and fight well tomorrow." Exhausted from the day's fighting, most of the generals began to clear the tent.

Viktor thumped Flik on the back. "Nothing like a good plan to raise the spirits," he declared. "It'll all be a matter of timing. We'll have to hold back until Luca's just over that ridge. Hey, where're you going?"

Flik had been studying the map again and noticed something that displeased him. He began walking towards Shu, who was speaking with Apple. "I'll want you to call in Kasumi. There are a couple of things I want to discuss about her part of the mission." His eyes shifted to take in Flik approaching. "Is there a part of the plan I can elaborate for you?"

"You seem to have forgotten me and my men," Flik replied. "Where am I to deploy tomorrow?"

Viktor pulled up behind Flik, putting a hand on his shoulder. Flik looked back as his friend said, "Your unit's in no condition to fight."

"Let's be honest, your command was decimated in this battle." Flik turned back to face Shu. "I don't assign any blame to you. In fact, your efforts ensured that Culgan didn't get into our rear, but your part in this campaign is over. You probably have half your men fit for duty."

It was a perfectly logical argument, but Flik didn't feel in the mood to listen to it. "You can't leave me out of this battle," he argued, voice rising. "I won't stand aside during the critical battle."

"I need your unit intact," Shu answered, his facing showing the beginnings of a frown. "Putting your men into the line of battle would be detrimental to that goal, all things considered."

"I don't have to be there long," Flik pleaded. "Only long enough to use the Fire Spears. Let my men strike first, and then we'll leave the fighting up to the infantry."

Shu sighed, rubbing at his forehead with the knuckles of his fingers. "You're not going to relent on this, are you?"

Viktor laughed and stepped beside Flik. "Of course he isn't. He's stubborn that way."

Shu quirked his eyebrows. "Once. Use your Fire Spears once, then get behind the rest of the army." His voice became tight. "I will relieve you of your command if you don't obey those orders."

Flik could feel himself smiling broadly. "That's all I wanted."

"You're dismissed," Shu said tersely, turning to speak with Kasumi as she entered the tent. Viktor and Flik walked out into the muggy night.

"Don't push your luck," Viktor suddenly warned.

"You mean with Shu?" Flik shrugged, thinking of the strategist's threat. "He wouldn't do that. Besides, I'm not about to disobey his orders."

"I'm not talking about Shu," Viktor answered. The two men stopped at an intersection, rows of tents spreading out around them, the hastily built palisade visible in the light of the nearly full Blue Moon. "Don't do anything stupid, like confronting Luca Blight by yourself."

"You think I would?"

Viktor faced Flik, looking him in the eyes. "Yes," he said seriously. "You get intense in battles. If you thought you could single-handedly win the next battle by some foolish action, you'd forget caution entirely."

"It wouldn't be foolish if it won the battle," Flik answered sharply.

"Just remember that your life is important to many people," Viktor replied. Then he shook his head and his comforting, goofy smile reappeared on his face. "Ah, I don't know why I'm all serious anyway. It won't even come to that. Tomorrow, we're going to thump Luca Blight and bring this war to end!"

"Right!" The two men shook hands in the middle of the camp and marched off to their respective units.

In the morning, Flik gathered his remaining men and explained their part in the upcoming battle. Looking at his mercenaries, he could see the truth in Shu's warnings. There were little more than three hundred present of the six hundred that had left Dunan Castle. Still, he had his four senior sergeants, and the men appeared to be in fine spirits. He mounted Nightstar and led them through the dirt streets of the camp to take up his position at the rear of the line.

At one point he passed by the men from Greenhill, who were preparing to march. Lady Teresa and Shin were going through the final review of the archers. Flik couldn't help but note how strange it was to see her on a battlefield. When she'd joined the army, he'd assumed that Shin would lead her contingent in her place, but she'd never once shirked that responsibility.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her chewing her lower lip. Trying to sound reassuring, Flik said, "Don't worry. We'll win."

Teresa frowned. "You say that with such confidence, but Luca Blight is a terrifying enemy. Still," -she sighed, her apprehension fading- "if we let fear paralyze us, we'll be killed for sure. Good luck, Flik."

"Good luck," Flik answered. Nightstar carried him beyond the archers. His men took up their place, waiting as the army began to exit the camp, heading west. The waiting was difficult, and he kept looking over his shoulder as the sun rose in the east, expecting to see the Highland Army marching out of the light.

No one did, and eventually his turn came. Flik pulled the collar on his yellow shirt up and rode Nightstar forward into the dust the rest of the army was kicking up. With his head down, he didn't see much of the countryside as it went past, but he knew they were leaving the forests around Radat behind, returning to the plains and great manors around South Window.

They reached the rise Shu had selected for the battleground before noon. When Flik arrived, he could see that the rest of the army was filing out into the lines that Shu had dictated. The far right of the line was covered by trees, while the buildings and walls of a manor anchored the left flank. Flik and his men had a hasty lunch on the forward side of the hill. Above them, on the crest of the ridge, were Riou and Kiba's men. The remainder of the army was hidden on the reverse slope.

The first scouts of the Highland Army appeared in little more than an hour. For a moment, Flik was afraid that they'd try to attack his men, to test his resolve, but they turned and trotted away. A looming cloud of dust in the distance marked the approach of the enemy's main body. Flik wondered what Shu would do if the White Wolves weren't leading the march.

That concern was dispelled soon enough, when the enemy halted to dress lines for battle. Flik could see the plumes on the helmets of both cavalry and infantry, marking them as Luca's men. There were a lot of them, but not so many as the New State Army. Flik lifted his eyes, scanning the road behind the White Wolves. There was no sign that any reinforcements were imminent. It looked as though Shu's plan might work.

A horn blared from the enemy side. Flik looked down to see a banner unfurling at the center of their line. The image was of a two-headed wolf, the Beast Rune, blue against a white background. In the heat, it appeared to shimmer and waver, almost as if it were radiating light. The sight made him uneasy, reminding him of when he'd seen that same image in the night sky. Gritting his teeth, he banished the thought. Now was not the time for fear.

The enemy was leading with heavy cavalry, more than a thousand men and horses bearing gleaming armor and long lances. It struck Flik as a strange place to put them, but he wasn't going to complain. He drew his sword. "Fire Spears, ready!"

The Highland charge built momentum, rising from a walk, to a trot, then a canter, closing the ground. Flik began to grin. They meant to use the heavy cavalry for shock, right from the outset. From the way they were bunched up, they'd apparently never seen Fire Spears before. He would make them respect the weapon. "Steady!" he shouted. "Let them come closer."

The ground rumbled under the pounding of horses' hooves. Flik held his sword up high, letting the sun catch it so that his men could see the light. The Highlanders had reached the foot of the hill, their lances coming down as the charge reached into the final gallop. "Now!" Flik cried, his voice drowned by the oncoming roar. His sword chopped down to provide the visual cue.

He suddenly felt the heat of the flames as the sweat on his skin evaporated. He watched as the charge came on, rushing to meet the fire. Flik nodded his respect for his opponents. They seemed to show no fear, even though they couldn't avoid being engulfed.

As quickly as they'd started, the Fire Spears stopped and the Highlanders were completely obscured by flames. Flik couldn't help but wonder if their whole unit was going to run right into the fire. It didn't matter. As devastating as the attack was, a large number of Highlanders would likely survive, and Flik had to get his men out of the danger zone. Yet his eyes remained on the blaze.

A single horse and rider emerged out of the conflagration, completely covered in fire. Flik could see individual strands of the horse's mane glowing bright red as the hair burned to ash. He clenched his teeth, reminding himself that war was never pretty.

Impossibly, the Highland rider approached his men, still galloping, despite the flames streaming off him. That's when Flik realized the couldn't hear the horse's agonized whinnying, or the man's howls of pain. In seconds, the rider's burning lance transfixed one of his men, who was too stunned to defend himself. The mercenary's dying scream was overwhelmed by the rumbling of thousands of hooves. Flik swung his head back to the fire and watched, horrified, as the charge poured out of it, smothering the flames by sheer mass. He could see that there were hundreds of Highlanders who'd just suffered terrible burns, but few of them appeared incapacitated.

"Retreat!" Flik yelled. He was fighting his mind's urge to shut down, to not believe the images in his eyes. There was no standing against this. His men began to scatter away, trying to avoid the lances of opponents who apparently didn't feel pain.

Nightstar was a nimble horse, and Flik managed to turn her completely around and heeled her to accelerate as quickly as she could. He twisted back and cast bolts of lightning towards the closest pursuers. One man was knocked off of his saddle, but the others absorbed the attacks without slowing.

A few of his own men were retreating with him. Flik could see Rossgard off to the left side, Hix and Tengaar on the other. Tengaar's braid whipped wildly as she tried a spell with her earth rune. The ground behind Flik buckled, cutting down the legs of the nearest Highland horses. That part of the charge faltered momentarily as the enemy went down in a tangle, giving Flik's group the time to get to their allies.

Kiba, sword in hand, was at the forefront of his line as Flik's men streamed past. "Steady!" the older commander hollered. "We shall repulse them!" He glanced at Flik and shouted, "What the hell happened?"

All Flik could answer was, "I don't know."

Once they were through Kiba's men, Flik reined Nightstar in, turning to watch the battle. For the second time in one day, he saw an impossibility happen. A man might be stupid enough to throw himself onto the spears of a prepared enemy, but no horse would ever be that suicidal. That was why charges against steady infantry rarely worked.

It did this time. Flik gaped as the Highland horses literally ran themselves right up into the spears of the New State Army. They, and their riders, suffered gruesome wounds as spears punched through their armor. Then the first spears began breaking, snapping as the charge pressed home.

Finally, Flik began to see Highlanders die. Whatever enchantment had given them this supernatural bravery, it wasn't proof against death.

A volley of arrows snapped through the air, over Flik's head, and towards the enemy lines. Huge bolts of Jeane's lightning flashed out of the sky, their impacts obscured by the slope of the hill. Flik realized that the battle was spreading as the Highland infantry caught up to their cavalry. Like the cavalry, the infantry seemed to be endowed against pain.

"Commander, we should move back," Rossgard suggested. "We need to find the rest of the men and reorganize the unit."

The center of the New State Army, under Kiba and Riou, buckled as the enemy cavalry forced open a gap between the two units. They were being pushed back, pushed off the top of the hill. A moment later, the flag of the Beast Rune appeared at the crest, and under it was a rider on a black horse, all in gleaming silver armor. Luca Blight.

Men began to flee from the banner and the King of Highland, who plunged down into the fray, his sword chopping left and right. A ring of bodyguards rode around the king, trying to keep up with him as he battled. Flik understood that, just as they were seeking Luca's head, Luca was seeking Riou, to put an end to this war by cutting down the leader of the resistance.

Nightstar took a few steps forward before Flik realized that he'd unconsciously given her the command to walk. He reined up, unsure of his intentions. Soldiers from Riou's unit were rushing by him, some throwing down their weapons, trying to escape. The center was unraveling; they were on the verge of losing this battle and possibly the war. What could he do?

"Commander!" Rossgard shouted, fear showing on his voice. "It is dangerous here. What are your orders?"

Luca Blight's sword flashed twice, each strike killing a soldier. Flik firmed his grip on his own sword. He couldn't see Riou, but he knew that his leader was somewhere in that mess. "That way!" Flik yelled, pointing his sword at the King of Highland. "Forward!"

Honestly, he'd fully expected to go alone, but the men around him responded, following as he advanced into the rout. He wasn't sure how long he could divert Luca's attention, but he hoped it would be long enough for Riou to escape.

Flik fought his way towards Luca and his bodyguards, his sword slashing into the faces of enemy infantry who refused to flinch, his lightning knocking aside enemies who never screamed, even in death. More enemies moved up to take their places, and the number of allies fighting around Flik dwindled. His advance began to slow. As close as he was, he wasn't going to make it to Luca after all.

The bodyguards on Luca's far side suddenly came under attack, falling to the spears of some brave State infantry and their commander, Viktor. With the Star Dragon Sword in his hands, he slashed at one of Luca Blight's protectors, knocking him off his horse. Flik, in desperation, heeled Nightstar forward, trying to get to his friend. He pressed her through a narrow gap, his sword and shield swatting aside enemy spears. Nightstar shivered uneasily at the closeness, but found her footing and got past, clear of the enemy infantry.

The bodyguards nearest to Flik rode forward to meet him, four against one. He reined Nightstar in, waiting to see how they would come at him. A knife flashed through the air by him first, flying into the throat of one bodyguard. Rossgard and Hix rode by on either side, and Flik was aware that Tengaar was behind him.

"Follow us!" Hix shouted.

"We'll clear the way!" Rossgard added.

Flik legged Nightstar forward again. Ahead of him, Hix and Rossgard each drew one of the bodyguards. The one remaining bore down on Flik, who called on his lightning rune. The blast stunned the Highlander, and Flik followed in with his sword, jamming the blade into the armpit of his enemy.

Beyond the tumult, Flik could see that Viktor and Luca Blight were circling on horseback. Their swords clashed together, an echoing crash of steel, and suddenly both men were attacking with a flurry of blows. Flik wrenched his sword out of the bodyguard and urged Nightstar onward. He saw Viktor's smile as he arrived, heard Luca Blight's answering snarl. It was time to face the beast.

Flik tried to circle in behind Luca Blight, but he saw the move and rode to meet Flik, Viktor following close behind. Coming head-on, Flik brought up his shield and braced for Luca Blight's strike. It clanged against his shield, ringing it like a bell, bending one corner back. Flik's answering thrust hit nothing but air. Viktor, still chasing, flashed by, and Flik was out of position.

He reigned Nightstar left, trying to catch the fight. Luca suddenly turned, cutting directly in front of Viktor, causing him to heel up unsteadily. Luca's sword hammered hard against the Star Dragon Sword as Viktor tried to regain his seat. Flik reached within again, calling for his lightning rune to save his friend. The bolt crashed against Luca Blight's breastplate, rocking him back into his saddle and scoring the silver armor. The King of Highland glared menacingly at Flik.

But Viktor had recovered. Together, the two of them tried to overcome Luca Blight. He wasn't to be subdued so easily. With his sword in a two-handed hold, he whipped it back and forth with astonishing ease. Flik found himself parrying more often than attacking, and none of his hits against Luca's armor appeared to penetrate. Flik's arms began to ache with exertion. He could see the exhaustion in Viktor's face too, but Luca showed little sign of slowing.

Luca's black mount suddenly bumped hard against Nightstar, knocking her off course. Flik struggled to regain control, but for a moment, Viktor was left to face Luca Blight alone. Both men were incredibly strong, both experienced combatants, but the King of Highland seemed to be fighting in a possessed rage. Viktor parried high and low, but was unable to block when Luca's mailed fist, tight around the grip of the blade, punched him in the face.

Viktor fell roughly out of the saddle, rolling over the ground. He didn't rise when he finally stopped. Luca turned to complete the kill, but Flik, in desperation, had brought Nightstar back into the fight. His shield wobbled as he parried Luca's jab, and his sword seemed to slide ineffectually along Luca's armor. The two began a tight, turning duel. Luca's sword and fist pounded against Flik's shield as Flik sought desperately to gain the initiative. He wanted to see if Viktor was all right, but didn't dare take his attention off of the King of Highland.

Luca Blight began laughing maniacally, and his attacks increased in tempo, slashes raining down on Flik's shield. One such slash split the top of the shield, nearly down to Flik's arm, before Luca's sword stopped, stuck in place. Sensing an advantage, Flik thrust at Luca, trying valiantly to wound him. Luca Blight wrenched his sword, still stuck in Flik's shield, pulling Flik's attack wide. All Flik could do was hold his seat as his shield was jerked back and forth. Sharp bolts of pain coursed up and down his left arm. Finally, with a snap, and another sharp pain, the straps on Flik's shield gave way. It flew off into the air, free from Luca Blight's sword.

Without a shield, Flik attempted to hold his own against Luca Blight. Flik parried away slashes and jabs. One of Luca's punches clipped his left shoulder, but Flik managed to recover, catching Luca's blade in a bind with his own. The two swords screamed, and Luca bore down, pressing Flik back. Flik's arms began to wobble and he was suddenly reaching for air, taking rapid, shallow breaths.

Nightstar trembled, gave a hysteric whinny, and a spray of blood splashed against both Flik and Luca Blight. The sword bind was broken, giving Flik his only chance. He kicked Nightstar to all speed, even as he saw that one of her ears had been bitten off. She responded in a frantic gallop that quickly cleared Luca Blight's larger horse. Droplets of her blood sprayed at Flik's face, nearly blinding him. When he cleared his vision, he saw that he'd well outdistanced Luca Blight.

He couldn't go back to finish the fight. Nightstar refused to heed any command, but continued running. However, even if she'd been under Flik's control, he knew he wouldn't have turned back. He didn't have the strength left to face the beast.

And so, amidst the wreckage of a shattered army, Blue Lightning fled the battle, Luca Blight's mocking laughter ringing in his ears.


	63. Chapter 63 No Time for Tears

**Chapter 63 – No Time for Tears**

Clenching his thighs and calves, Flik held on tightly as Nightstar galloped, nimbly avoiding and outpacing fleeing soldiers all around her. It was only luck that had set her on a course to the northwest, away from the Highland army. She turned as the brick wall of a manor came up, racing parallel to it over uneven ground. Now Flik began to recover his wit. He pulled hard on the reins, trying to slow her, but she refused the command, snorting fiercely as he jerked her head. Blood was streaming down the right side of her neck, flowing from the stump of that ear.

The wall angled away from them, turning at a ninety-degree angle. Nightstar ran on, briefly pounding over a dirt track running perpendicular to their course. Flik reined right, hoping she would respond. She didn't, but carried him out onto the fallow field on the other side of the road.

A drop of rain splashed against Flik's left arm. A sharp, cool wind picked up in his face, and he looked to the sky to see menacing, dark clouds overhead. Light flickered in some of those thunderheads. More raindrops streaked around Flik as Nightstar continued on, undeterred by the approaching storm.

There was another blast of chilly air, pushing at Flik right out of the clouds, followed by a deluge of rain, obliterating sight and sound all at once. Nightstar's frenzied flight ended abruptly, throwing him roughly onto her neck. Squalls of wind and rain drove over him. A bolt of lightning crashed into a field less than a mile away, the roar of thunder shaking Flik as he attempted to steady himself.

He could feel Nightstar trembling under him, so he dismounted to take that burden off of her, though he kept his hands firmly on the reins. He ran his hand along her side and neck, trying to soothe her. Her pulse was still running widely. He glanced over the field, but with the rain, he could see little. There might be hundreds of fleeing men around him, yet he was alone.

Flik's arms began to ache, especially his left. He began to shiver. "Let's find some shelter," he said to Nightstar. With one last rub of her mane, he walked out in front, leading her by the reins. She followed without resistance. More bolts of lightning flashed out of the sky, to Flik's growing unease. He knew that power, and knew it would do him no good to be struck by one of those bolts.

Another wave of rain and wind rolled over him, and he put up one arm, futilely, to block it. Nightstar lurched, there was a sudden cracking noise, and she collapsed, pulling Flik over onto the turf. For a moment, he was too fatigued and sodden to pick himself back up. He simply stared at the individual blades of grass he could see, bent down under the pounding rain.

Finally, he got up, less for his sake than for Nightstar's. Even before he went to check her, he dreaded what he would find. In her exhaustion, and in the darkness, she'd placed one of her hooves in a hole in the ground, some animal's burrow. Flik watched as she tried to rise, a struggling shadow on three legs, before she collapsed again, this time making no further effort. She was illuminated briefly in another flash of lightning, lying awkwardly on her side. He could see her ruined ear, one eye that seemed to track him as he approached.

The light gave way again, the darkness that followed was deep, night approaching. He knelt down by her left front leg, too soaked to care about the mud. He feared what he would find, but felt along that leg anyway. The fracture was unmistakable when he found it, and there could be only one course of action when a horse had suffered such an injury. Flik drew his sword. "I'm sorry," he whispered. Nightstar gave no sign of the cold blade as he placed it point down on her neck. Perhaps she was too exhausted to notice. Perhaps she was in too much pain.

Flik struck without hesitation, driving the blade into the arteries of her neck. Nightstar spasmed, strongly enough to twist Flik's wrist, and he let go of the sword, crying out in momentary pain. He felt a spray of hot blood hit him along his cheek and chin, as Nightstar scrabbled her legs against the ground. Finally, she lay silent, unmoving. Dead. He stared blankly for a moment, unsure of what to do next. Rain continued to pound him, and the darkness was complete. Any number of Highland soldiers might be sneaking up on him.

Flik retrieved his sword and began to jog, rapidly picking up the pace until he was sprinting. He had no goal in mind, he needed to get away. There was no way to find any direction, no means to mark the passage of time. He didn't remember stumbling, he didn't remember collapsing onto the ground, and he didn't remember falling into dreamless slumber.

Hours later, a voice brought Flik back to consciousness. "Is this the one we're looking for?" Something sharp prodded him, none too gently, on the back. Remembering his situation, he suppressed his instinct to twitch. He let his eyes open slightly.

Another voice spoke up. "Is this one even alive? He looks pretty dead to me."

Flik was on his stomach, but his head had turned to the side. Through the slits of his eyes, he could tell it was day, but he couldn't see any of the speakers.

"But he's got the blue cape," the first voice replied. "Just like they described this morning. This is one of the important ones who needs to be brought in alive."

Flik could see the grip of his sword, lying only a foot or so from his right hand. All he had to do was inch that hand forward. "Well, he doesn't look much alive to me," the second voice commented. Something sharp jabbed Flik again. "Look, he doesn't even yelp when I step on him."

"What's going on here," a distant voice shouted. The voice was familiar to Flik, and it appeared to be coming from above.

"Oh, hey, Chaco!" the first voice replied. "Come on down here and tell us whether this is Flik of the Blue Thunderclap."

"Lightning," Flik muttered, opening his eyes wide to see the two Wingers standing next to him. "It's Flik of the Blue Lightning," he repeated with as much force as he could muster.

The two Wingers jumped excitedly into the air and landed several yards away. "See, he is alive!" the first one shouted.

Flik didn't feel alive. The muscles in his arms and legs protested when he tried to get up. His left shoulder nearly gave way when he put weight on to that arm. He'd managed to sit up when Chaco touched down beside him.

"You're looking good," Chaco offered. "Rise and shine, pretty boy, because there's still a war on."

Flik groaned. "I feel like hell."

Chaco shrugged. "Well, it's not like I didn't warn you, but there's a whole lot of Highland cavalry one field over, so get up, because we're not going to save your ass when they get here."

Grabbing his sword, Flik sprang to his feet, gasping from the pain. He staggered about, trying to get his bearings. All of the fields around him looked perfectly clear. Chaco started laughing, then lifted into the air when Flik glared at him.

"You lied to me!"

"It was for your own good," Chaco shouted back. "Every minute you spend on your butt is one more minute you'll have to walk to get back to the army."

The reality of the last battle settled in on Flik. "We…still have an army?" he asked.

Chaco circled over Flik's head. "I doesn't matter if all you stupid humans run away, the Winghorde will keep on fighting to protect our land. Even now, we're fighting so that you guys can fall back." He pointed up into the air. More of the Winghordes were flying overhead, clutching rocks and branches in their talons and hands. All of them were flying towards the east, back to where the Highland army was.

"How about it?" Chaco asked, diving lower. "I've seen a lot of you people running away as fast as they can. Are you going to run too?"

Flik shook his head, the motion bringing more pain. "No. No, I promised to stay with Riou to the end. I won't break that now."

Chaco swooped by Flik's face, giving him a pungent blast of the fish oils on his black wings. "Man, don't say it so negatively. You make it sound like we're going to lose. I'm not planning on losing, and neither should you."

"All right, it's not over yet," Flik conceded. "Where's this army of ours? I want to be there when we finally defeat Luca Blight."

Chaco nodded. "I'll take you. Maybe then Grandma will let me in on the fighting."

They set out in a generally westerly direction, Flik and his three Winghorde minders. At first, Flik found it difficult to move, and he shambled along, feeling like an old man. Eventually he worked the stiffness out of his muscles and, though the pain didn't go away, he could walk more freely.

It was a good day for travelling. The storm had brought with it a gentle wind out of the northwest, making the day warm, rather than oppressively hot. When they stopped for lunch, Chaco shared out some fish. It tasted rancid to Flik, but the Wingers seemed to enjoy it. The food did quiet his stomach, at least.

In the afternoon Flik finally found other stragglers from the New State Army. Some of these men ran when they saw him approaching, but others recognized him and fell in with him. Late in the day, with the cloud of the marching army visible in the west, a half-company's worth of the mercenary cavalry overtook Flik, riding in from the south. The person in charge of this remnant was Jerrim.

"Commander, I'm glad to find you alive," the senior sergeant said. "I saw you fighting against Luca Blight, but no one knew what happened to you after that."

"I'm all right," Flik answered.

Jerrim suddenly frowned. "Sir, your horse, is she all right? Where is she?"

Flik held his voice steady with an effort. "She broke a leg." As a group, his hardened veterans winced. "I did what was necessary."

Jerrim nodded and dismounted from his horse. "Ride mine, sir."

"I couldn't do that, Jerrim. Then you'd have to walk."

"It doesn't matter if I have to walk, but the commander should always ride proudly. It wouldn't do for you to return to camp like some infantryman." The men around Flik nodded.

"Get on the stupid horse," Chaco said, tapping his talons impatiently. "It's getting dark and I still want to do some fighting today."

An hour later, Flik caught up to the New State Army, riding in as the soldiers were setting up the palisades for the night. There was no way to count how many men remained with the army, but those that he could see retained their discipline. Would that be enough to stop Luca Blight?

He met no one of note as he rode through the camp, finally arriving outside the command tent in the center. One of the guards ducked inside, then returned and motioned Flik to enter. Flik had worried that he might be interrupting a strategy session, but the interior was nearly deserted. The only person present was Shu, seated at the head of the table, black hair disheveled and his face streaked with smudges of dust.

"It's good to see you back," the strategist offered, inclining his head slightly. "Anything that can be salvaged from that…defeat…is a good thing."

Sudden fear gripped Flik. "Is everything all right? Is Riou well?"

"Riou is fine." Shu gestured towards one of the dividers. "He spent the day using his Rune to heal the wounded and has retired for the night, completely exhausted."

Nanami's face appeared around the edge of the divider, red and blotchy, sure signs that she'd been crying. Her expression changed to relief when she saw Flik. She stepped around the divider and asked, "Why did you do that, Flik? You two shouldn't have gone after Luca Blight like that."

"You all got away safely. That's all that matters in the end."

"That isn't all that matters!" Nanami shouted, crying again. "Why are all of you damn warriors like that? Don't you care about your own lives?"

"Of course I do," Flik answered. "But I also care for the lives of my comrades. I wouldn't let them down by running away."

Shu was rubbing his forehead. "That's enough arguing for one day. Nanami, you should go to bed too. I know how hard you've worked with your water rune."

"I'm not tired," Nanami replied.

Shu stood up, looking much like a father scolding his recalcitrant daughter. "Yes you are. I order you to your bed. If you won't go, then I'll get Oulan to carry you there. We both know she's capable of that."

Nanami glared at Shu. "I'm not leaving my brother."

"Fine," Shu relented. "But you will sleep. I'll get Oulan to bring in a cot for you. Agreed?"

"Agreed." She turned from Shu back to Flik, chewing her lower lip. "Is Viktor all right? He was with you when you fought Luca Blight."

"He didn't return?" Flik asked. Suddenly, he was toppling forward, just catching himself against the table before he whacked his chin against the edge.

"You and he were the only two generals unaccounted for," Shu replied, eyeing Flik carefully. "What happened in the duel?"

Flik swallowed, trying to control his breathing. He pulled out the nearest chair and collapsed into it, staring up at the beige canvas. "We weren't able to kill him," Flik admitted. "Hell, we weren't even able to wound him. And Viktor" -he stopped, swallowing again, feeling tears in his eyes- "was knocked from his horse. I didn't see what happened to him, because I was fighting Luca, but I couldn't- I couldn't-"

"Enough," Shu said softly. Flik looked down, surprised to see concern on the strategist's face. "Enough. There will be no scapegoats for the last battle. As much as I hate to admit it, my plan failed. I don't want to believe that mere brawn, even with a Rune to back it up, could defeat my planning, but it did."

"What now?" Flik asked, exhausted and numb. "Can we win against the Beast Rune?" He could see that the mention of the Rune made Nanami pale.

Shu's smile was grim. "We can. I think Luca Blight used it too soon. You see, the Beast Rune requires a blood sacrifice to invoke its power. Hence, what Riou and Miklotov saw at Muse City were simply the preparations for this day. The Highland Army won't have that power the next time we face them. All we need to do is pick the correct battlefield."

"How can you be so confident?" Flik asked. He certainly didn't feel confident. The numbness of learning that Viktor was still missing was fading, but it was leaving him with a sick feeling in his stomach. He was aware of how many times he'd depended on Viktor in battle, how many times Viktor had come through for him.

"Because Lord Riou continues to fight." Nanami drew in a breath to interrupt, but Shu held up a hand to stop her comment. "There is no comparison between Lord Riou and Luca Blight. The King of Highland is a powerful warrior, but he is always alone. He has no compassion for either friend or foe. Riou, on the other hand, draws people to him. He fights alongside faithful comrades who won't desert him. So long as Riou remains with us, Luca Blight's defeat is assured."

Flik was having trouble following the discussion. He could feel himself want to tear up even more and was trying to fight it. "That's a pretty vague hope," he finally replied.

Shu raised his eyebrows. "Really? Should I say instead that it's because I have more strategies to play? I do, but it is Riou who makes their success possible. His power is our hope." He studied Flik more closely, then stood up from his seat. "It is time to sleep. Nothing will ever be accomplished if we're too overwrought to think straight."

Leaving the tent, Flik found Jerrim and the remainder of his men. They were forced to sleep in the open, having abandoned their tents due to the precipitous flight. At least it wasn't raining this night, though there was a surprising chill in the air, a foreshadowing of summer's end. Flik lay on his back, watching the waning Blue Moon crawl across the starry sky, and tried not to worry about Viktor, tried not to blame himself for allowing Nightstar to carry him from his fallen friend. He failed.

Miserable and tired, he was back up before dawn, greeting more of his men who'd escaped the disaster and made it back to the army. Another group of fifty soldiers, led by Danel, trotted through the lines. When Flik took a hasty roll later in the morning, he had one hundred and four men and two senior sergeants. Some of his men confirmed those who had fallen, but there was no word of Tarrance, Rossgard, Tengaar, or Hix. Or Viktor.

Just before the army was to set off, as Flik was readying his men at the head of the army, Riou approached him, with Nanami hanging back slightly. Flik could see that the defeat was weighing heavily on Riou. Little showed on his face, except possibly the dark patches under his eyes, but his mood was subdued and his steps were heavy.

"I saw what you and Viktor did," Riou said. "I wanted to thank you for protecting me."

Flik shook his head lethargically. "We couldn't defeat him."

"There will be another chance," Riou replied, smiling wanly. "When that time comes, I want you to stand with me. Viktor too, when he returns."

Working to keep his voice from trembling, Flik asked, "You think he's all right?"

Riou sighed heavily. "It seems that so much has been shattered all around me- nations, armies, and lives. I hope I haven't destroyed your friendship."

Nanami rushed forward, grabbing her brother's arm. "Don't talk like that," she cried. "You're not the cause of all this sadness."

Flik reached out to touch Riou's head. He wanted to say something bold, like how the end wasn't inevitable, or how Luca Blight would be defeated. He could say the words. Viktor's absence still weighed too heavily on his heart. What Flik said was, "I don't blame you, Riou."

"I know," Riou murmured. "I just never expected the war to be so awful. I don't want to see my friends fall before me. So many have put themselves in mortal danger- Ridley, Viktor-"

Flik felt a surge of anger, though he wasn't sure who it was supposed to be directed at, himself or Riou. "Enough. No one was coerced into joining you, Riou. We joined you out of love, and we risk our lives out of love. I'm sure that Viktor and Ridley feel that way too, and they wouldn't want you to be bitter about their sacrifices."

Riou's smile became genuine. "Thank you, Flik. Still, I hope this next battle will be the last. Lead us out, we're heading back to Dunan Castle."

Flik closed his eyes and, with an effort, pushed all of his fears about Viktor to the side. "As you command." He turned and mounted his horse, not Nightstar, but a butternut gelding that was somewhat stockier. His men rode out with him at the head of the army, moving north and west up the road towards Dunan Castle. The Winghordes continued to provide aerial scouting, reporting that parts of the Highland Army had taken Kuskus and South Window, but that no enemy would intercept them short of Dunan Castle.

When the city and castle finally came into view, out of the afternoon haze, Flik wondered how the people would take the news. By now they undoubtedly knew that some disaster had happened to the army. However, what he saw was not panic, but determination. People were working on the walls, extending the fortifications to cover the expanding city. Others, men young and old, had gathered spears and were drilling.

They looked up as Flik's men approached the southern gate. He could see concern, even fear, in those faces, but they didn't stop their training. No disorganized crowd mobbed the mercenaries. Instead, they were greeted inside the walls by a delegation of women led by Leona and Barbara.

Leona's smile was guarded as she said, "Welcome home, Flik. We'd heard there'd been some…trouble, and we've set people to working, trying to help out."

Flik took in the scene again. "The battles didn't go exactly as we wanted, but we aren't lost yet."

Eilie suddenly burst from between Leona and Barbara, nearly bowling into Flik. "Is Riou all right?" she demanded, fear showing in her eyes. Before Flik could answer, Nina had also darted forward. She did plow into him, throwing her arms around his chest in a fierce hug. "I'm so glad your safe, my lord Flik! I was so worried about you that I could hardly sleep."

Barbara grabbed both girls by the arm and roughly hauled them away from Flik. "That'll be enough of that. There'll be plenty of time to hear the news, good or bad, without you two suffocating him."

"Riou's fine," Flik said. His eyes met Barbara's, and he wavered over the next bit of news. The emotional pain rushed back to the front of his head, making his eyes water, his hands tremble. He swallowed, gathering strength, embarrassed to be breaking down in front of all these women. Still, he decided that it would be best for Barbara to hear about Viktor from him. With an effort, Flik said, "Viktor's missing." The news hurt her, though nothing showed on her face except the slightest widening of her eyes. He plowed forward in the telling, afraid that if he stopped, he wouldn't get started again. "We went forward to face Luca Blight. Viktor was knocked from his horse, and I haven't seen him since." Leona put an arm on Barbara's shoulder, as if to draw her into an embrace. "I'm sorry," Flik concluded. He let out a trembling sigh, then wiped at his eyes.

Barbara shook her head. "Don't go apologizing, you idiot. You two were only doing what you thought was best at the time. Besides, Viktor…he knew the risks." She shook her head more forcefully. "Now's no time for tears. He's not dead yet, and we've got to keep fighting until he gets back."

Her tone struck him hard, making it difficult for him to argue. "I know that, but I-I've always relied on Viktor. He's always been there for me, for years and years, and now I've failed him. I left him up there on that hill."

Leona surprised Flik by suddenly pulling him into a tight embrace. "You can't let that stop you," she said. "Think about how much he relies on you. If he's lost, he needs you to find him. If he's captured, he needs you to go rescue him. He wouldn't want you to lose hope, Flik. He'd want you to keep fighting, to keep helping Riou, but most of all, he'd want you to be happy."

Flik nodded, pushing himself out of Leona's hug. "I understand. I'll try, for his sake."

There were more tears, though, as the rest of the army arrived and the afternoon wore on. There were tears of relief at happy reunions and tears of grief for those who were missing or dead. After dinner, when the whole army was safely back in barracks, Riou gathered the generals in the great hall. Flik knew that he and the others felt the absence of Ridley and Viktor.

Huan spoke first, giving a medical report. He concluded by saying, "I wanted to thank you, Lord Riou, for your consideration of the wounded. Your efforts have undoubtedly saved many lives."

"Thank you for the report," Shu said, stepping forward on the dais. "As you have heard, the New State Army is fundamentally intact. Shortly, the enemy will approach Dunan Castle and put this place under siege. We will have to make preparations."

"Do you have a plan to counter Luca Blight?" Kiba asked. He had a dressed gash on his forehead, making him look even grimmer than usual.

All Shu would answer was, "Things are progressing."

"What a monster," Gilbert muttered, leaning back in the far corner.

Apple glanced sharply at Shu. "Are we strong enough to defeat him as things stand?"

The hall began to fill with whispers, the beginnings of arguments. Flik looked to Riou, who'd listened impassively, head down. Suddenly, Riou's eyes came up. "That's enough!" he shouted, silencing the generals. He walked to the edge of the dais, swinging one hand out. "Whatever powers Luca Blight has, he's not invulnerable. It is my intention to fight him again. Furthermore, I personally will seek out and kill the King of Highland."

The statement took Flik's breath away, made Nanami squeak in protest, and caused Shu to nod. Riou continued speaking. "It's not that I have no fear of Luca Blight, but that I want this war to come to end. However, I can't do this alone. I need all of you with me if we are to accomplish this. Please, help me!"

Several generals shouted in the affirmative. Flik said, "I'll fight with you, Riou!" The clamor continued until Shu held out both hands.

"We are all resolved to help you win, Lord Riou. Together, we will bring an end to this war. Now, let us rest. Tomorrow will be the time for strategy and plotting, and a final confrontation."


	64. Chapter 64 Comrades

**Chapter 64 – Comrades**

In his dream, Flik stood over the shadowy form once again, the driving rain obscuring all vision, his sword in hand. He peered forward, looking for the damaged leg. Instead, he found that the figure wasn't his horse, but human. The man rolled over, revealing Viktor's pale face, streaked with blood.

"You killed me," Viktor accused. "You left me to die. You turned your back on your friend and lived."

Flik bolted upright in his bed, shivering in the dim morning light. He tried to shake off the dream. He knew there was no point in trying to get any more rest. All of his dreams had been troubled, filled with images of violence and dying. Sliding out of bed, he dressed quickly and exited the room.

The halls of Dunan Castle were quiet, both because of the early hour and the dire situation. Flik was struck that there were no kids running down the corridors, as was usual. So much was missing because of the war. He was further reminded of that when he stepped into the bar and didn't hear Viktor's laughter. Out of habit, he sat at their usual table, and Leona brought a breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage along with a mug of beer.

Not much later, Humphrey entered and took the seat next to Flik. The two men ate and drank in silence, not looking at each other, until Humphrey finally glanced at him and said, "It's tough, worrying about those you love. It's harder if you shut yourself off from everyone."

"I know." After all, he wasn't the only one suffering over Viktor's absence. Leona was clearly shaken, and Barbara had to be hurting too. Humphrey would be feeling pain as well. Who knew how many others were also touched?

"Things'll get better," Humphrey added.

"I know."

Flik found that the plate in front of him was empty. Feeling the need to be doing something, he got up from his chair. Humphrey nodded and gave him a little smile as Flik walked past. Outside, there was still a chill in the morning air, and a mist driving in off the lake. He made his way along the streets, glancing around at the city. He'd seen it growing up from the outside, but he'd never looked at the individual buildings before. On the right was the nearly finished library, a project that had been initiated by Emilia when she arrived from Greenhill. On the left, nestled up against the old city walls, was a church, consecrated to the True Earth Rune. Further down the street were another half dozen shops and residences, all in the process of being built.

As the sun rose, Flik began to feel more invigorated. People began to come out onto the streets, setting about their daily tasks. For some reason, his blue cape was instantly recognizable. He was greeted with well wishes by complete strangers. No one appeared dispirited by the coming trial. No one blamed him for the defeats of the army.

Arriving at the barracks, he rousted his men out, running an inspection of their equipment. Flik knew the results wouldn't be good, not after the disastrous retreat, but he went ahead anyway. His mind was still full of emotions - worrying about Viktor, anticipating the next battle - that he had to do something to distract himself. When the inspection was over, he led the men out on a patrol.

He led his column through the south gate, unsure of his destination. All he knew was that he wanted to do something, that he couldn't wait in the castle and not strike a blow against the enemy. Shu would probably chastise him when he returned.

At first, Flik found nothing of note. For all that he knew the Highland Army was out there somewhere, everything was quiet. Then a pair of Wingers swooped out of the sky to politely inform him that he was blundering around in a war zone.

"What are you doing, you damn idiot?" One of them shouted, circling overhead. "We were just about to drop a whole mountain-load of rocks on your ass, but you lucked out, 'cause one of our guys recognized that cape of yours."

Flik reined his horse in, bringing his column to a halt. "Sorry. Actually, we were looking to help you, if we could."

The first Winger slapped his forehead. "You might try informing someone before you run out into the middle of a battle." He pulled a lazy loop in the air before adding, "Fine. I'll go inform the others. You wait here for instructions. Don't move, unless you like rocks flying at your head." The two Wingers ascended, gliding out of sight over a line of distant trees.

While waiting, Flik caught sight of a few more flights of the Winghordes, some heading south to join the fighting, others returning north to pick up more projectiles. Before noon, another Winger glided down to face Flik, a young woman with her long, brown hair tied in a braid. "Follow me," she ordered tersely. She flapped her wings, heading in a southwesterly direction, off the road. Flik got his men moving after her.

In a half-hour, they were riding through light woodlands, and Flik could hear the sound of battle - metal clanging and the shouts of people. He drew his sword, glad to have found combat at last. As if this were a cue, the Winghorde woman glanced back and said, "Wait a moment," before disappearing up into the canopy.

Flik reluctantly brought his men to a halt, but detailed a pair to go forward and find out what was happening. Before those scouts could return, an older, scarred Winghorde man descended from the trees. He studied Flik and his men appraisingly before saying, "So, you are the troublemakers that have trespassed onto the battlefield."

"We're here to help," Flik answered. His horse, feeling his emotion, shifted a little before he brought it under control.

The Winger laughed, tucking his wings against his back. "Then you are in luck, we have need of you. Some of those Highland bastards have trapped a group of refugees against the shoreline. We've been trying to help the refugees, but the enemy brought in archers to drive us back. Take care of those archers and we'll take care of the refugees."

"Got it." Flik kicked his horse into motion, waving for his men to follow. The two scouts arrived shortly and gave him a quick rundown of the field and numbers. The forest gave way to sand more than a hundred yards from the beach, where at least five hundred Highlanders had cornered a similar number of refugees. Using the Fire Spears would be problematic because of the confused situation. Flik didn't want to kill the innocents he was trying to save. Of course, five-to-one were terrible odds. He had to get to those archers so that the Winghorde could help him.

There was a brilliant flash of light off the lake, and Flik realized that he was at the edge of the tree line. In a moment, Jerrim's men had fanned out to the left, Danel's men to the right. Below, the sand was already littered with corpses - civilians, Highlanders, and Winghorde. The refugees had been backed down into the surf, faced by a semicircle of enemy cavalry. The archers were further up the beach, covering their compatriots. Even as Flik watched, a boulder thudded harmlessly into the sand, followed by a Winger with an arrow in his wing. He twitched feebly before several Highlanders got to him with their swords.

"Charge!" Flik shouted. His horse lurched forward onto the sand, stepping carefully on the loose soil. He knew that this wasn't going to be a full-on gallop, but he rode onwards, his men streaming out behind him on both flanks.

They were spotted a quarter-way down the beach, and the Highland archers began to turn. Flik gritted his teeth and reached for his shield, only to remember that it had been ripped from him in the last battle. He felt a pang of vulnerability race through him, but suppressed it. The first arrows were flashing towards his men. In quick succession, two men to his right were hit; one knocked out of the saddle by a killing shot in the forehead.

"Forward! Forward!" More arrows whipped by Flik. He flinched as one buzzed angrily past his right ear. He'd covered only half the ground to the archers. Several more of his men were wounded and killed, men that he couldn't afford to lose. This was going to be ugly.

Suddenly a rock as large as a horse crunched into the center of the archers' line, crushing men into the sand. Winghordes followed after, diving out of the sky, stabbing at the Highlanders with spears, or pelting the archers with slung rocks. As Flik drew into range, he cast a sheet of lightning into the confusion, then covered the remaining distance to press the attack with his sword.

Even caught as they were, the archers proved resilient. Some discarded their bows and drew swords to meet Flik's attack, while others turned to try and drive off the Winghordes. Flik parried aside several sword thrusts, slashed the plume of an officer, and connected into one opponent's shoulder. Several of Flik's mercenaries joined him, pushing the center of the Highland line back. He could feel the enemy's will wavering.

Then a cavalryman in blue and white challenged Flik. He could see more of them riding up from the surf to reinforce their comrades, while others were moving to cut off Flik's retreat. Flik met the first rush, twisting his sword inside of his enemy's and disarming the Highlander, following that with a stab that crunched into collarbone. The Highlander nearly fell into Flik's saddle as he slid off his horse.

More enemies swirled around Flik. He could see Wingers fighting too, with their spears and their talons. He found himself fighting another cavalry officer, matching him stroke for stroke, before ending the duel with a bolt of lightning. Using the rune made Flik waver momentarily, and he had trouble parrying the next attacker. The flat of the oncoming blade smacked hard into Flik's knuckles, but he kept his grip and thrust at the Highlander, opening up some space.

A fletched blur that passed right in front of him made Flik pull up. He saw the archer peripherally, pulling another arrow from his quiver, but wasn't able to do anything about it, as his first attacker was riding forward. Flik parried the blade, then turned and tried to fling a spear of lightning at the archer. It missed, scorching sand instead, though the noise rattled the archer. Flik turned back to block another attack with his sword, countering with a desperate lunge. His sword drove into the Highlander's throat, ending that threat. He yanked his horse around in time to see the archer lining him up again, an arrow knocked on his bow.

A black sword cleaved through the wooden bow and the arm that held it. A muscular man in a yellow shirt stepped between Flik and the archer, his black hair matted with sweat. A second sword stroke served to finish the archer, but Flik was beyond caring at that point.

"Viktor!" he shouted, and urged his horse towards his friend.

Viktor appeared not to hear, and Flik momentarily lost him as another Highlander approached to fight. Flik met the attack without mercy, aiming more lightning into his enemy's face. He caught sight of Viktor again, chopping at the legs of a mounted cavalryman.

Flik entered the fray, stabbing the back of the Highlander's neck. The soldier immediately collapsed off his horse, and Flik met Viktor's eyes. "You're alive!" Flik cried, his voice breaking with relief.

Viktor's expression was mock aggrieved. "You took my kill!"

Jumping down from his horse, Flik rushed over to clasp Viktor in a hug. "You're alive! You're alive!"

"Um…yeah, but there is still a battle going on. I'd like to be alive at the end of it, too."

Flik finally let go. He could feel tears sliding down his cheeks. "I'm sorry. It's just that I thought you were dead." He glanced around the field. Despite Viktor's warning, the Highlanders were pulling back, clearly having had enough of this fight.

Viktor shrugged, giving a goofy grin. "Yeah. I didn't mean to go down like that. Some of your guys pulled me to safety, and we fell in with these refugees."

Flik was tempted to hug him again, but was aware that they were being watched by his men and the Wingers. Instead, he said, "There're a lot of people back at the castle that were worried about you."

"Well, we shouldn't make them worry any longer than necessary. Besides, I'm really looking forward to some of Leona's beer."

It turned out that Viktor wasn't the only missing soldier among the refugees, which was why they'd been able to hold out against the Highlanders until Flik's help had arrived. Rossgard was there, missing his helmet, but otherwise unharmed. Tengaar and Hix also rejoined Flik, and they all began the march back to Dunan Castle.

When they regained the road, Flik looked back. A vast cloud of dust filled the horizon, and under it he could make out the shadowy forms of flags and marching men. There was the main body of the Highland Army, tens of thousands of soldiers, heading towards Flik, heading towards the final battle at Dunan Castle. Flik turned and rode for home.

They arrived to find the city bells ringing, calling the generals to council. Viktor shrugged again and said, "I guess there isn't going to be any time for beer."

Flik ordered Rossgard to see to the men, then he and Viktor ran for the keep. Together they burst through the main doors, charging down the entrance hall. Meg and Millie had to jump to one side to avoid getting run down. Beyond them, Flik could see that the Tablet of Stars stood empty. He sighed, knowing that they would be last to the meeting.

And so they were, when they finally dashed by Oulan and into the great hall. Flik was aware that this was probably not his best entrance, panting from the long run and covered in dust, sweat, and blood. Luckily, he wasn't the center of attention.

"Viktor!" Nanami cried from the dais, and ran down to hug him. He managed to extract her only to be embraced by Riou. Several others, including Freed, Camus, and Miklotov came over to express their relief. Shu, still on the dais, smirked and remarked, "It seems that my wayward generals have finally returned home. If you would all settle down, I have some more good news to share with you." He nodded toward the entrance. "Oulan, if you would bring them in, please."

Flik felt a moment of nervous anticipation before several shadowy figures appeared in that portal. The first to step into the sunlight was Kasumi, who bowed slightly and said, "I am pleased to report that the operation was a success."

"What operation is this?" Freed asked, but then all eyes were drawn to the second person entering the room.

Viktor's exclamation served to cover for all. "Ridley! You're not dead! How the hell did you escape from the enemy?"

It was always difficult to read the kobold's expression, but Flik thought he detected amusement on his face as he strode into the room and faced the dais. "Lord Shu, as usual, planned ahead and sent help to free me." Ridley's face suddenly turned troubled and he hesitated before adding, "However, I also received key aid from another, unexpected, person."

Flik resisted the urge to shout, "Just tell us who, already!" Instead Klaus, in a more sedate manner, asked, "Of whom do you speak, Lord Ridley?"

Ridley paused another moment, stared intently at Shu, then answered, "It was the strategist of the Highland Army, Lord Leon Silverberg, who helped me to flee. Without his help, I wouldn't be here."

The meeting room filled with the babble of half-formed questions. Flik distinctly heard Apple as she turned to Shu and asked, "Are you in communication with him?"

Shu waited out the questions, maintaining a tight-lipped expression that hovered on becoming a smirk. Only when the room was silent did he speak, addressing a question to Ridley. "Did the Highland strategist give you any messages while you were escaping?"

Now Ridley looked decidedly uncomfortable under Shu's stare. "He did, Lord Shu, but…I'm not sure whether to trust his word on this. I can't believe he'd betray such critical information without some sort of plan."

"Out with it," Shu commanded, making a cutting motion with this arm and closed fist.

Ridley bowed his head. "Yes, Lord Shu. I was told that Luca Blight will make a night raid the first night his army is encamped around our castle. He intends to take our positions with one swift strike through the forest to the southeast."

Voices rose in clamor. Viktor shouted, "Let's fight him then! Deploy the whole army and we'll smash them."

Gilbert muttered, "Can we really trust this information?" An argument began, some of the generals in favor of immediate action, others wanting to take a more cautious view. Flik didn't join in the discussion, but watched Riou and Shu on the dais. Both of them seemed content to let the combatants spend their energy yelling at each other.

Eventually the arguing wound down. Valeria, who had also remained silent during the quarrelling, said, "Some of us had the chance to see Leon Silverberg in action during the Liberation War. He is cunning and devious, in both war and politics. His goals are often difficult to fathom. However, if his intention and ours coincide, I think we should trust him, at least in this. The question is, does he really desire to betray Highland?"

"I am certain that we are both aiming at the same goal," Shu answered. He turned to face Riou, a move that signaled the end of any debate. "Lord Riou, I cannot deny the possibility that this is a trap designed by the enemy. Still, any move that we make now will entail severe risks, and the rewards for making this move are potentially huge. The choice is yours; we can respond to Luca Blight's night raid by attempting to ambush him on the field, or we can stand ready behind the city walls and try to repel him there."

Thoughts flitted through Flik's head in the moments that Riou pondered. The ambush would be incredibly risky. There'd be little time to devise a plan and no time to practice it. Even if it were sprung perfectly, Luca Blight might manage to escape or he might prove too powerful to subdue. But waiting behind the walls would change little. They might repel the attack, but in the morning, the situation would still be hopeless.

Riou showed no hesitation despite having to make such a momentous choice. "I pledged to take any chance to defeat Luca Blight and end the war. Now is our chance. Shu, draw up a plan for us.

Shu nodded. "I understand. While I have not worked out all the details just yet, allow me to offer you the outline of what I think will work. It will involve small units because of the need for secrecy. Several units will be placed around the edge of the forest, and, when Luca Blight enters, they will move to cut off all of the escape paths. Meanwhile, three assault squads will attack Luca Blight directly, two to harry him and whittle down his protectors, the third to go for the capture or kill."

"I will lead that squad," Riou asserted.

"Of course," Shu confirmed. "I think the other two ought to be led by-"

"I'll do it," Flik interrupted, at the same time that Viktor shouted, "I want to pay Luca back for roughing me up."

The two of them glanced at each other. It was no surprise to Flik that Viktor would voice the same thought on this matter. As much as he wanted Viktor at his side for the coming battle, the idea of him leading the other strike unit felt correct. Together, they turned to hear Riou's opinion.

"Yes, Viktor, Flik, and I shall lead the assault against Luca Blight."

"So be it," Shu said. "Each of you should select trustworthy comrades for your teams. We shall deploy at sundown!"


	65. Chapter 65 The Sword Shattered

**Chapter 65 – The Sword Shattered**

Nighttime darkness surrounded Flik as he picked his way through the trees, leading his team to their appointed position. Behind him, lights blazed from the walls and windows of Dunan Castle. Soldiers lined the walls, all in an attempt to deceive Luca Blight. As the trees finally obscured the city lights, Flik paused to let his eyes adjust to the softer light of the waning Blue Moon.

He took a deep breath and tried not to fret about the upcoming battle, or his team's composition. As soon as word of the plan had spread throughout the castle, he, Viktor, and Riou had been inundated by enthusiastic volunteers. Flik selected Hix and Tengaar almost immediately. Hix was a trained warrior that he trusted and Tengaar had an earth rune to support them. Moreover, he knew that the two of them couldn't be separated in battle.

Flik's next selection had come as something of a surprise. Regretfully, he'd permitted Viktor to choose Humphrey and Futch. He'd been looking for another strong sword to back him up when Rikimaru offered to fight alongside him. When Flik asked why, the giant swordsman merely laughed and answered, "Seems like all I've been doing around here is sitting on my ass and eating rice. I want to do something to pay back the kindness I've received. Besides, now you'll finally get to see my Onimaru in action."

If Rikimaru had been a surprise, the next volunteer came as an utter shock to Flik. Without preamble, Luc walked over and announced, "I'm joining you in this fight. You'll get slaughtered without my magic."

Flik bit back an instant rejection. "I've got plenty of my own magic, you know."

Luc sneered. "You think because you can create a bunch of petty sparks that you can compete with me? I can use the wind to pull the living breath out of their bodies. I can crush their bones down to dust under its force or fashion it into a blade sharper than any a smith could forge. You should be grateful I'm coming with you."

Flik was grateful, but he wasn't going to tell Luc that. When Luc joined, Flik had been reasonably satisfied with the make up of his team. Most of the remaining volunteers were clustering around Riou, wanting to join their leader for the final battle. Flik had chuckled to see the number of young women who were in that crowd. However, one of those girls wasn't interested in Riou at all.

"Sir Flik, I want to go with you in this battle." This young woman was Nina, for once not throwing herself directly at his arms or trying to steal an article of his clothing.

Flik's instinct was to refuse, but he didn't. Her demeanor was serious, serious enough to follow him out into the battle even against orders. Instead, he asked, "Are you trained with a weapon? How would you help us?"

She held out her right hand, revealing the blue sparkle of a water rune. "I got this…after we spoke on the tower. I've never borne a rune before, but I've been practicing with it nonstop. I want to help you, Flik. Don't turn me away."

The logical, rational part of his mind still wanted to refuse. A poorly trained mage would be of little use in a battle. Luc was sneering openly and Tengaar looked dubious, but Nina's obvious determination swayed Flik's soul. "Will you follow my orders exactly? If I tell you to stay back, will you? If I command you to run away, leaving me behind, will you?"

Nina shook, blinking back tears. "You wouldn't actually do that, would you?"

Flik put harshness into his tone. "War is like that, Nina. I have to have confidence that you'll follow my orders without my having to check up on you. I have to be able to trust you. It's the only way that we'll achieve victory."

She blinked once more, then met his gaze evenly. "I promise to follow your orders, Flik, but please don't command me to stay behind."

"I won't. Just don't try to go face-to-face with one of the enemy soldiers," Flik answered. "Stay behind me and look for an opportunity to use your magic in support or healing."

"Thank you, sir Flik!" Nina shouted, finally throwing herself at him.

That had been how Flik had selected his team. He was glad for the darkness now, so that no one could see him blush. His choices had hardly been objective, based on careful deliberation. Of course, he hadn't had the time for that kind of planning. After the selections had been a whirlwind of preparations: going over the approach routes, coordinating with the other assault elements, and requisitioning proper armor for Nina.

The very last thing he'd done was to acquire a new shield for himself. The new shield had an earth rune embedded on the face. Hans, in charge of the army's armor, promised that no one, not even Luca Blight, would be able to destroy this shield.

Flik adjusted it on his back, trying to get used to how its weight was distributed, and ducked under a tree branch. In a low voice he called back for the others to be careful and continued on. He tried to move quietly through the cool air, over ground that was already wet with dew. If he strained he could hear the other teams, though he couldn't see any of them. Over to his right, Shiro and Kinnison would be leading a squad of archers into a position behind Flik. Somewhere to the left was Viktor, and beyond him was Riou. There were others as well, squads to block off escape routes and scouts to warn of any change in the Highland movements.

Finally Flik and his team arrived at their starting position, the south end of an oval-shaped clearing. It wasn't very large, a hundred feet long and thirty wide, but it was enough to break the canopy and admit the moonlight. Flik and the others hunkered down in the tall grass at the edge of the tree line and waited. Kinnison's archers filtered in behind them.

For a long time, nothing happened. All Flik could hear was the droning of cicadas and the occasional shuffle of his teammates. At one point, he whispered, "Steady, steady," more for his own benefit than anyone else's. His vision narrowed, focused on the east end of the clearing, where the Highlanders were expected to emerge.

He'd almost gone into a trance when the noise from the insects suddenly stopped. He started, shook his head, and put his hand on the hilt of his sword. Nina must've noted the movement, for she whispered, "What's going on? Is it time?"

Rikimaru answered, "Hush. You'll see. Any minute now you'll see them."

His words were correct. There was light in the trees at the east edge of the clearing and then a column of Highland soldiers bearing torches marched into the clearing. It took Flik a second to register the white plumes on their helmets. These were the White Wolves, the soldiers under Luca Blight's personal command. His anticipation mounting, Flik ducked lower in the grass, waiting for the king of Highland himself.

The soldiers were moving briskly and didn't stop to sweep the clearing, but marched on. Flik didn't try to count the column's numbers. He mentally replayed the plan in his head, ignoring the sweat on the back of his neck.

Luca appeared then, riding into the clearing on the same black horse that he'd dueled Viktor and Flik from. A plumed officer was riding alongside him, and Flik could hear their conversation as they approached.

"Lord king, I beg of you, if you must come along with us, I entreat that you remain further back. There's no need for you to come this far forward."

Flik could hear Luca's snarl. "You want me to cower back there? I'm no coward!" His voice became shrill, manic. His eyes were wide. "I'm no coward! I'll show you! I'll kill them all! All of them, the pigs! I'm not afraid of anything! No one will stop me!"

"Of course, my lord, but there is always the possibility of an ambush. Surely you've noted how the enemy seems to be targeting you personally? It would be a grievous blow to our kingdom if you were wounded or-"

"Do you think any of the pigs could touch me!" Luca shouted. "Look at them! Look at them!" He reined to a halt in the center of the clearing, right in front of Flik's team, and gestured into the night sky, waving his hand to the northwest. "Do you see that light? Those are the torches of Dunan Castle! They aren't brave enough to face me, not now! They're in there trying to figure out how to escape. I'll kill them all!"

Off to Flik's right, distantly, the forest erupted into the sounds of combat. He flexed his fingers around the hilt of his sword and tried to regulate his breathing. The column of Highland soldiers abruptly came to a halt as a messenger pounded up to Luca Blight.

"Commander, the advance scouts are under attack by the New State Army. It's an ambush!"

The officer, a panicked look on his face, turned to Luca Blight. "My king, you must fall back now. The plan has been discovered."

Luca, surprisingly, took the news calmly. "So, it appears that someone over there has some balls. Press forward, fan out and try to find the flanks of the enemy positions. Keep attacking and they will break."

The messenger ran off, and the front part of the column began to move. Before that had progressed very far, another messenger ran up from the east. "My lord, an attack against the rear of the column! They've cut us off from the rest of the army!"

Luca Blight's answer came in a subdued voice. His eyes were closed; his face was almost contemplative. "Those sneaky bastards. How did they know?"

The officer at his side was not nearly as calm. "What do we do, my king? They've attacked us on both sides."

Luca's voice began to rise in both pitch and volume, though he seemed to be speaking only to himself. "The damn cowards. They're always like this. Just like that time…that time…Mother!" He stopped and looked around as if realizing where he was, then screamed in rage, "You can't do anything right, you worthless fools! You let her die! Kill them! Kill them all! Attack!"

"Loose arrows!"

Luca's horse reared, and a flight of arrows passed over Flik's head, striking the confused Highlanders. The officer that had been speaking with Luca took three in the back and toppled off his horse, leaving the king of Highland looking dumbstruck.

"My liege," one of the soldiers shouted, running towards the king, "you must get out of here!"

More arrows streaked through the air, metal tips glinting in the torchlight. Highland soldiers went down, wounded and killed, but Flik was watching Luca Blight. Several arrows hit his horse, and both he and his beast collapsed to the ground. Flik drew his sword, rising up out of the high grass, and began to run.

"Forward! Follow me!"

The Highlanders were in disarray. Legs pumping, Flik hurdled a fallen soldier, then smashed a wounded man aside with a slash. Luca Blight was rising up from behind his horse, shaken, but apparently unharmed. With his sword in hand, he turned and met Flik's gaze.

"Luca Blight, I will take your head!" Flik shouted.

Luca casually stepped over the corpse of his horse, bringing his sword up. "Foolish braggart! What can a bunch of weak cowards do against me?" A jet of flame suddenly raced along the length of Luca's sword, snapping and sizzling in the cool night air.

Flik's mind recoiled from the flame, but his instincts were carrying him onward. He caught Luca's first slash across his new shield, wincing as sparks splashed over the edges, burning pinpricks on his arm and face. Hix and Rikimaru arrived, three blades to Luca's one. Luca's blade cut a fiery gash through the air, forcing all of them back.

Highland soldiers were rushing in to join the fight now, but Flik kept his ground, facing Luca Blight. He felt the wind rush by him, slamming into several of the approaching enemies like thrown rocks. It also curled the flames on Luca's sword, magnifying that menace.

Flik tried his lightning rune, but Luca Blight didn't seem to notice the electricity striking his armor. The king of Highland lunged forward, cackling madly, and cut another arc of flame. Flik flinched away, feeling the searing heat against his cheek. Peripherally, he saw Luca's backstroke catch Hix in the stomach. The youth went down, and Tengaar screamed desperately.

Flik had to push aside his own concerns and continued to face Luca. He jabbed with his own sword, the blade screeching as it drove along the armor of Luca's arm. Luca snarled and brought his flaming brand back, but Flik ducked under the strike, came up nearly face to face with his opponent, and called for another thunderbolt.

The flash from that attack blinded Flik, the crash deafening in his ears. He felt himself stagger back and remembered to bring up his shield to ward off the counterattack. It didn't come.

When his vision returned, he saw Rikimaru standing before him, driving back Highland soldiers with wide sweeps of his huge sword. One enemy was caught on the blade and lifted into the air. Blades of wind flashed by Flik, cutting down a pair of Highlanders that tried to duck inside the length of the sword. Nearby, Tengaar and Nina were hovering over Hix, who'd managed to pull himself to a sitting position. His armor had been parted and he had a nasty burn running along his left arm, but he was otherwise unharmed.

"Where's Luca Blight?" Flik shouted, searching feverishly for his target.

"You hit him good," Rikimaru answered, working his sword back and forth. "Some of his guys pulled him back; they're heading for Viktor's position."

Without thought, Flik started running. "Stay here!" he commanded. "Look after Hix! I'm going to chase down Luca Blight! Viktor might need me!"

He raced out beyond the protection of Rikimaru's sword, throwing sparking balls of electricity into the Highlanders in the shadows. He ran in on the heels of the last orb, slashing and jabbing ferociously, not so much to kill, but to make them move aside. Beyond the ring of enemies, Flik found himself back under the trees, but not in darkness. Flames were already snapping at the underbrush and the dry leaves, and distantly he could see the raging brand of Luca Blight.

Flik plunged into a confused melee of friends and foes. His boots crunched on a circle of magical frost, then he joined Valeria, Kasumi, and Sheena in fighting a large group of Highland soldiers. More enemies were slipping around behind them when the whole forest suddenly shook. Flik had time to look up before he saw something giant and furry roll out of the shadows, making the trees shiver when it hit them.

He dove aside as it bowled into the fight, crushing several enemies into the turf. In an instant it was gone, snapping the trees further down the slope. Two girls and a robot barrel followed in the wake of that destruction.

"Go Bonaparte! Go!" Millie shouted, seemingly oblivious to the danger.

"Mistress Meg, I calculate a ratio of four to one against us," Gadget intoned somberly. "Switching to attack pattern three."

Flik shook his head as they disappeared, but he didn't go after them. Bonaparte's intrusion had created a gap in the enemy lines. Flik lunged through it, leaving the battle behind to chase Luca Blight. Again in the darkness, he nearly lost his footing as he stumbled into more fallen soldiers, then nearly collided into another one. The two combatants sprang apart before Flik realized that this was Humphrey.

"What happened?" Flik asked.

"That way." Humphrey pointed into the distance. As Flik looked, four Highlanders came running out of the forest. "I've got them," Humphrey declared. "You go after Luca Blight. That's where Viktor went."

"Thanks," Flik answered. He let Humphrey lead the charge at the enemies and sprinted as Humphrey's sword crunched into the first of them. Flik bashed one soldier aside with his shield and was in the clear, running through the shadowy forms of trees lit by fires from Luca's sword. Branches and leaves whacked at him. Flik burst through the foliage into the midst of a group of Highland soldiers.

Without trying to confirm their numbers, Flik thrust at the closest, catching him in the ribs. Spearpoints danced before Flik's eyes, and he swung his shield out to block. Iron pounded against his guard, forcing him back. There were more enemies than he'd anticipated, seven at least. He lashed out with lightning, but a thrown spear caused him to duck aside, and his aim was off, the bolt flashing harmlessly into the night.

The Highlanders kept the pressure on Flik, three of them harrying him while the others formed up to make a rush. Then a pair of men crashed out of the trees behind Flik. One in red, one in blue, their swords drawn, they struck at the soldiers nearest to him. The one remaining enemy in front of Flik wavered and gave ground, backing up to join the others.

"Thank you, Camus, Miklotov," Flik said, feeling lightheaded from exertion.

Camus pointed his blade at the Highlanders. "Come on, if we attack this rabble together, we can put them to rout."

Flik looked up at the five enemy soldiers. Though they'd been surprised by the arrival of the two Matilda Knights, the shock had now worn off, and they were preparing to attack again. Taking a deep breath, Flik answered, "Okay."

"For all those who were slaughtered at Muse!" Miklotov shouted. "Charge!"

The three men barreled down on the Highlanders, swords stabbing, slashing, and blocking. Flik parried one spearhead, turned as Miklotov engaged the man, and slashed at a Highlander trying to sneak inside of Camus' guard. Flik nearly found himself laughing. The three of them had no plan, but they seemed to fight as if guided by one mind. They combined against one unfortunate Highlander, then split, driving the remainder into two groups. When the three of them had slain two of the remaining four, the survivors wisely fled back into the darkness.

"I'm heading for Riou," Flik shouted.

Camus nodded. "We'll cover you. You go and help Riou finish this."

"I saw Viktor ahead of us," Miklotov added. "He's looking for Riou, too."

Flik sprinted forward, using his sword and shield to knock branches out of his way. The ground lurched from an explosion, nearly making him slip, but he gathered himself and ran on. Someone to the side was throwing fireballs furiously, light streaking through the black trunks of trees.

Then a greater light overwhelmed that, a dome of white power that could only come from one source. Flik angled towards the sign of the Bright Shield. The white light disappeared back into the darkness, leaving him blind. He clipped a tree, spun about, and ran hard into another person. The collision sent Flik sprawling onto the forest floor. He rolled and came up, sword and shield ready.

"Wait, Flik! It's me!" Viktor shouted.

It was, though Flik could see little more than a blurry outline. "Sorry about that. The light killed my night vision."

"He's just ahead," Viktor replied. "Come on, we've got to help Riou!"

Flik struggled on, keeping pace by focusing on the silhouette of his friend as they ran towards the sound of fighting. They were approaching another break in the trees when the noise abruptly stopped. Had Riou finished the job? Had Luca Blight won instead?

The forest gave way to another clearing, and Flik finally had a good view of the battlefield. To his great relief, he saw that Riou was alive, helping his sister up into a standing position. All of Riou's companions appeared to be alive too. Eilie was hovering near Riou, and Gengen was leaning over his sword and panting. Freed had taken off his glasses to wipe the sweat from them, and Wakaba was inspecting a broken wrist guard.

"Where's Luca Blight?" Viktor shouted, running towards Riou. This caused Riou's protectors to jump in alarm before they realized who was doing the yelling.

Riou finished pulling Nanami to her feet before he turned to answer Viktor. "He's heading for the final ambush. Shu will have the signal and the archers ready."

Viktor shook his head. "You've got to go after him, Riou! What if he manages to break through Shu's trap? We can't let him get away, not after we've come so far! We won't get another chance like this." Flik would've added his own comment, but he was too busy trying to catch his breath to do more than stand in awe of his friend's lungs.

Riou nodded. "I just wanted to make sure that everyone was all right, first."

"There's no time for that!" Viktor countered. "There's only one goal right now - hunt Luca Blight down and kill him. Everything else is secondary!"

Flik was startled by the vehemence of that statement. Still, Viktor had suffered terribly in this war. There was no doubt that he wanted it finished by the quickest means possible.

Riou held Viktor's gaze. "Right. I'm going after Luca Blight. The rest of you keep up as you can."

"I'm not staying behind!" Nanami shouted.

"Then let's go," Viktor added and began running.

The chase was on again, Riou and Nanami holding a slight lead over Viktor and Flik. Flik could hear the others following behind, but gradually the four of them outpaced their allies. However, there appeared to be an obstacle ahead.

One man was confronting a group of Highland soldiers. At first, Flik wasn't sure who this reckless warrior was, but it became apparent when he heard his voice.

"Tremble, fools, before the almighty power of the Fire Dragon Rune! Your end is nigh, for I shall burn all of you to ash."

For once, the Highlanders did turn and run, but that was because Viktor was yelling "Charge!" at the top of his lungs. Flik could clearly see Zamza's confused expression as first Riou and then Nanami sprinted by him. Viktor didn't even notice when he clipped Zamza's shoulder, causing the mage to spin to the ground. Flik, bringing up the rear, hurdled over the prone form and didn't look back.

He did hear Zamza's plaintive cry. "Come back! You ruined my big moment! I was going to show everyone my power! I was finally going to get enough respect to get a room!" Then Zamza was out of mind, for up ahead he could see the soldiers of Highland regrouping, and with them, Luca Blight.

"We've caught you!" Viktor roared. "We'll finish you here!"

Luca Blight's sword had been extinguished, but his pride was not. "Finished, you say? What are you thinking, maggot? All I hear are the squeals of a pig about to be slaughtered!"

A line of soldiers interposed themselves between their king and the attackers. Viktor, Flik, and Riou plunged right at the wall, metal clashing and clanging in the darkness. Flik aimed a bolt of shining electricity at Luca Blight, only to see it intercepted by one of the White Wolves. He didn't get the chance to fire a second, but had to deal with the soldier in front of him.

Using both ferocity and training, he locked blades with the opponent, shield bashed another, and slipped his sword in a tight circle, disarming the first. He dispatched that man with a quick thrust to the neck and turned to face the second. Slashing and jabbing, he forced the soldier back, off balance and stabbed him in the thigh.

More soldiers were pressing in, trying to protect their king. One of them grabbed him by the arm and shouted, "My liege, you must get back! Please, escape!"

Luca glowered fiercely at Riou, separated only by the space of a few feet. "Follow me if you dare! I have the power to take your life, boy!"

"We're not done yet!" Riou answered as more Highland soldiers pushed in. He raised his right hand, and Flik quickly averted his eyes, knowing what was coming. Even with his eyes closed, he could see the intense, painful burst of light from the Bright Shield Rune. The soldiers in front of them started screaming. Flik could hear them fleeing from the power of the Rune.

When the light winked out, Riou was off and running again. Viktor, Flik and Nanami chased after him, running as hard as they could, but none of them caught up. The trees were thinning out, the forest giving way to an open field and a cliff overlooking Lake Dunan. There was a single tree at the edge of the cliff, and Flik could see the last signal, the intermittent glow of released fireflies.

Nanami shrieked, and Flik heard her hit the ground behind him. He and Viktor turned back to find her sitting up, rubbing at her ankle. "It hurts," she whimpered. "Please, don't leave me behind. I need to be by Riou's side. Please."

Viktor knelt down. "All right. Here, climb up on my back. I'll get you the rest of the way."

When Nanami got a secure grip, they started sprinting again, but Flik knew they were too late. As they broke free of the tree line, he could clearly see Riou confronting Luca Blight by the tree. Though the King of Highland had been struck by many arrows and there was blood staining his silver armor, he was still standing, still grasping his sword. Flik could clearly hear the words Luca Blight spoke to Riou, filled with seething hatred.

"Why do you interfere with my holy war? This world must suffer as I have suffered. It is only just!"

"Riou!" Flik shouted, stretching out his stride.

Riou held his tonfar ready. Luca Blight took a stride forward, sword on point, voice harsh as he spoke. "You scum, I will kill you! Here I come…Riou!"

Flik could hardly watch. His legs seemed to move in slow motion as the duel unfolded. Luca Blight slashed hard at Riou, his sword sparking against the metal tips of the tonfar. Again Luca struck, and again Riou absorbed the impact on his weapons. Luca reared back for another overhead strike, screamed maniacally, and swung down. Riou moved then, stepping forward and driving upwards with his tonfar, steel meeting steel. Nanami screamed.

The sword shattered against Riou's guard, the blade snapping into pieces.

Riou's counter came instantly, striking once, twice, and a third time against Luca Blight's silver breastplate. On the third impact this too shattered into pieces. Riou's fourth attack crunched into Luca Blight's unprotected sternum. Flik could clearly hear the sound of bones breaking. The King of Highland staggered back, collapsing against the lone tree.

Suddenly, Viktor and Flik had arrived, just as everything was finished. With a cry, Nanami flung herself off of Viktor, wrapping Riou into a hug that nearly knocked him over and did make him drop his tonfar. Flik stood back a little, looking at Viktor, trying to process the reality of the situation. He almost didn't hear Luca Blight's grunt as he used the tree trunk to lever himself back into a standing position.

"You've broken the sword. It seems that my power was not enough…not enough to stand up to the decrees of the gods." He coughed, blood trickling down his mouth. "Why do you fight? Why do you wish to hurt me even more?"

Riou was still in Nanami's hug. He shifted slightly to look Luca directly in the eyes. "I wish to end this war. I wish to bring peace to this land."

Luca gave a harsh bark of a laugh. "To bring peace to this land? That is nothing but a child's fantasy! What do you know of the hatreds that make us fight? What do you know of jealousy? Of anger? Of rage? Of vengeance? At your age, I'd already hunted down the men who violated my mother." His eyes narrowed. "Men from Jowston. I made them suffer before they died, and I enjoyed making them suffer. What can you do against such hatreds, Riou?"

Luca's body began convulsing, and Flik thought they were death spasms before he realized that the King of Highland was suppressing laughter. "Excellent! Excellent! The hunger that gnawed at my body! The thirst that scorched my flesh! All is disappearing!" He broke down in maniacal laughter, blood oozing out of his mouth. He steadied himself once more, all trace of the mania gone, and addressed Riou through clenched teeth.

"Listen Riou, and understand the power of my hatred. It took hundreds to kill me, but I killed humans by the tens of thousands! Look at me, Riou. They will speak my name in fear, forever. I am sublime! I am perfection! I am the true face of evil!"

"You are nothing," Riou answered calmly. "Nothing but the shell of a man who let his pain consume him. I am sorry that you refused to release your hatred. The living shall forget you and the dead shall condemn you. Goodbye, Luca Blight."

Flik wasn't sure Luca heard those words. The light had gone from his eyes, and his corpse toppled forward, first to his knees, and then face-first onto the ground.

Cheering broke out all around Flik. Suddenly New State soldiers were rushing in from everywhere, wanting to be near Riou. Flik shook his head, exhausted. "It's finally finished, isn't it? We finally won."

Viktor gave a whoop, but Nanami was staring intently at Riou. Flik was going to see if they were all right, but was caught up in the press of celebrants. Shu and Apple got to Riou before Flik could.

"Lord Riou, it is time to return to Dunan Castle," Shu said. "We have won, and there are a lot of people waiting to hear new of our victory."

That was when Flik realized that Riou had slumped in Nanami's arms, showing no signs of life.


	66. Chapter 66 Take Action

**Chapter 66 – Take Action**

_In Solis 460, Earthsdei, the 19__th__ of Aujet:_

_Dear Diary,_

_Shu says that today Riou should be up and around. I'm grateful for that. Seeing him in Nanami's arms like that, I was sure he was dead. No one was truly happy about our victory until we learned from Huan that he would be okay. Once he's back on his feet, we can begin thinking about securing the peace._

_The Highland Army continues to fall back, with most of their units heading for the port of Kuskus. Only a few men remained behind to receive the body of their former king. In exchange for Luca's body, the Highland Army agreed to the release of all the prisoners they had captured. Hopefully, this will provide the firm ground to begin negotiations._

_I'm sure that Riou desires peace more than anyone. I only hope that Luca's successor shares that desire._

Riou, supported by his sister, walked into the great hall to the thunderous applause of the generals. Flik was glad to see that his color was good, but was also shocked to see how tired their leader looked. Riou let Nanami guide him to a chair that had been placed at the foot of the dais, where he sat down.

"Thank you, all of you," he said. At least his voice sounded strong, and his eyes were attentive, taking in the whole room.

"It's good that you're feeling better," Flik replied. He chose his next words carefully, not wanting to offend. "A lot has happened, but the most important thing is for you to maintain your health."

Viktor was less tactful. "Yeah, you really gave us a scare, collapsing like that. Both Nanami and Eilie were absolutely white with fear." Nanami shot Viktor a harsh look, then turned away when Riou glanced at her.

"I'm all right," Riou answered, smiling. "I may be a little tired, but there's nothing wrong with me. Even Doctor Huan says so."

Ridley cleared his throat. "If that is the case, then allow me to congratulate you on your performance. That last battle was glorious. You have impressed me deeply, Lord Riou." He hesitated, then spoke again in a slightly more subdued tone. "If only my son were so brave."

Shu stepped forward, hands raised to forestall any more praise. "I'm sure that we all agree with Lord Ridley's words, but allowing each of you to express that sentiment would take all day and waste time that I'd rather not lose."

"So what if we waste time?" Sheena asked. He was lounging against the far wall. "We defeated Luca Blight, this whole war is nearly over."

"All the more reason why we can't let our guard down," Shu responded, clasping his hands behind his back. "While the new king of Highland may not want to conquer Jowston completely, he may well desire to hold on to much of the territory that Luca Blight took. We must not think that there will be no further need for fighting."

"Hear, hear!" Ridley shouted. "The lord strategist is correct in this regard. Who knows what the Highlanders are scheming?"

"Not to be bold, but my belief is that the next king of Highland will be Lady Jillia Blight," Kiba commented. "She has always opposed war with Jowston. I don't see any reason why the war will continue if she is on the throne."

"Yet we must plan for all possible…permutations," Shu countered. "Even if Lady Jillia is the logical candidate to succeed, we must be prepared if she doesn't."

"Thank you for your opinions," Riou said. "I'm sure we'll be ready, no matter what happens. It has always been my intention to bring peace to all of Jowston. Indeed, to both nations, if possible. Our first goal should be the end of immediate hostilities."

"The Highland Army has shown some interest in sending an ambassador to Dunan Castle," Shu added. "With your permission, I'd like to explore that possibility. If nothing else, we would learn something of their intentions."

"Agreed." Riou got up from his chair, waving off Nanami's help. "Unless there are any further concerns, I think we've covered everything. We must continue to be vigilant, but I also believe there is some hope for peace. This meeting is adjourned."

"What do you think?" Flik asked, as he and Viktor were heading for Hai Yo's restaurant later that day.

"Riou looks pretty good. Whatever it was that hit him, I think it's passed." Viktor wiped his forehead, which glistened with sweat. The day had turned hot, and they'd been practicing with their men.

"Yeah, he does." Flik looked down the corridor, watching a group of children rolling hoops along the floor. The two of them split to let the hoops and children past. Once they were out of earshot, he lowered his voice and said, "I was wondering what you thought about the possibility for peace."

Viktor's eyebrows jumped up. His response was in a normal tone of voice. "I'm all for it, of course. Why would you ask a question like that?"

Flik hated being evasive where his friend was concerned, but he still picked his words carefully when he replied, "I'm just concerned, that's all. We all say we want peace, but there's no agreement as to how to achieve it. Lately I feel as though we're dividing into two camps. One camp wants to negotiate now to end the war and the other wants to follow up our victory by driving the Highlanders out and then negotiating."

Viktor stopped in the middle of the hall, crossing his arms. "Are you saying there's something wrong with that? I want the Highlanders out of _all_ of Jowston, not just a part."

Flik shook his head. "I'm not saying there is, but what if Riou decides differently? What if he decides to trade land for peace?"

"He won't do that!" Viktor argued, raising his voice. "He's not the type to leave something half-finished, you know that. This war isn't over until all of Jowston is liberated."

Flik nodded. "Of course. I'm just saying that Riou will continue to need our support. We can't let silly things like factions weaken us if we're to succeed."

"Gah! It's not like I'm a part of any faction, Flik. You know how much I hate politics. I just want this war to be over and Jowston to be whole and at peace."

"It's no problem." Flik put on his best smile to cover his concerns. "Look, here we are at Hai Yo's. I just hope we don't have to wait long for a table." The problem of factions did worry him, though. Not all of the generals had staked out positions, but the opinions of some, like Kiba and Ridley, were obvious. Flik didn't like politics either, and he dreaded coming up on the opposite side of this issue from Viktor. He wondered, would he favor trading land for peace, especially if it was something marginal, like Ryube Village?

The real questions were where Shu and Riou stood, especially Shu. Everyone knew that he had a huge amount of influence over Riou. His opinion might decide Riou's. Yet Riou had become somewhat more forceful of late. Suppose the two of them clashed? Flik rubbed his forehead. There were too many possibilities, and many of them were bad. Why did peace have to be so difficult?

"Yo, Flik, stop daydreaming," Viktor said. "They're ready to take us to a table."

Flik snapped back into the present. "Right, sorry."

About half way to the table, a commotion suddenly broke out by the entrance to the kitchen. Flik glanced over and noted a man in a salmon colored chef's outfit being restrained by several of the staff.

"Where is Hai Yo?" he shouted. "I'll have my revenge for what he did to my brother!"

"Why does stuff like this happen when we're here?" Viktor groused. He gestured to his sword. "So, should we go break this up?"

Before the two of them could move, Hai Yo emerged from his kitchen. He took one look at the intruder and waved the staff away. "Listen Ryuko, I didn't kill your brother. He took his own life after I defeated him, that's all."

"Liar! My brother was a great chef. He wouldn't lose to a coward like you in a fair match. I'll prove it to you and avenge his death."

Hai Yo shook his head. "No, Ryuko. You're not in my league. I am one of the Four Masters of the Clan. If your brother couldn't defeat me, you have no chance."

Ryuko bristled at the comment, his face turning nearly the same shade as his outfit. "I don't care! My brother is dead because of you. Grand Master Hai Yo, I challenge you under the laws of the Black Dragon Clan. Accept my challenge, or hand over the 'Blue Moon Bird' that you stole."

"Did the other masters put you up to this, Ryuko?" Hai Yo sighed, but the hesitation dropped out of his face. "Fine, I will take up your challenge. Let us prepare for the cook-off."

During the conversation, Viktor and Flik had drifted closer to the two chefs, in case Hai Yo needed any help. As the staff began to rearrange the tables, Flik felt his stomach growl. "Damn, just what I needed. Everything's going to be delayed because of this. Come on, Viktor, let's see if we can beg Leona for some sandwiches."

Hai Yo appeared to hear the remark and turned to scrutinize Flik. "Actually, I was wondering if you'd do us the honor of judging this contest, sir Flik. You too, sir Viktor. I believe that both of you would make excellent judges."

Flik backed up a step, saying, "Actually, I think we'd better-"

"We'll do it," Viktor interrupted, grabbing Flik by the arm and yanking him back into place. "It'll be fun and it'll get us fed, so I'm all for it."

"That's not really how I wanted to-"

"Very good, very good," Hai Yo said, smiling at the two of them. "Over here, I will introduce you to the challenger."

Flik sighed. There was nothing to do but participate in this insane contest. Following Hai Yo, he got a closer look at Ryuko. Smaller than Flik, he had a thin mustache that curled up at the ends, much like Hai Yo's. He'd produced a long, wooden spoon from somewhere and was regarding the preparations with a sneer.

"These are two of the judges," Hai Yo said without preamble, "Viktor and Flik."

"Names are nothing." He jabbed Viktor in the stomach with the spoon. "This one can certainly pack it away. He's acceptable."

"You do that again and I'll snap that spoon in half!" Viktor growled. "Wait, what did you say about my eating habits?"

Ryuko had already moved on to Flik, who found something in his gaze unnerving. It was as if Ryuko didn't see him as human, but simply an object to be categorized. When the spoon jabbed out, Flik slapped it aside with a backhand. One eyebrow on Ryuko's face twitched, but nothing more. "Warrior's Village trained. He has a high sense of honor and fair play. He's acceptable. Now I'll shall find two more." He walked off, poking and prodding at various customers with his spoon.

Flik rolled his eyes and turned to Hai Yo. "I don't understand why this is so important. You're losing a lot of money by stopping everything for this silly contest. Is the recipe that important?"

"Perhaps you don't understand because of your background," Hai Yo replied. He swept off his hat, revealing thinning hair. "I've spent my entire life working my way up through the Black Dragon Clan. Kings and nobles, even Harmonian Bishops, they all pay vast sums for the honor of having a member of the clan at the head of their kitchens. Do you not see the potential for trouble there, if the clan became unscrupulous? Whole governments could be toppled in a single night. Or worse, there are some foods that can be used to control the minds of people, to turn them into puppets. It is exactly that kind of thinking that the other Grand Masters are endorsing."

"They could do that?" Viktor asked, wide-eyed.

Hai Yo put his hat back on. "With the 'Blue Moon Bird' they might. That is why I do this. That is my mission." He bustled off to help with the preparations.

"What a story," Flik said, wiping his forehead.

Viktor leaned in close. "So…should we rig the scoring?"

"Of course not!" Flik took a step away, checking to see if anyone had overheard. "We wouldn't want Hai Yo disqualified, especially if what he says is true."

"You believe him?"

Flik watched Hai Yo and Ryuko arguing over the placement of the tables before answering, "Better safe than sorry." The two chefs continued their argument, wok and spoon clashing as if they were swords.

Eventually all the preparations were made, and Flik found himself sitting at one end of a long table with Viktor next to him. The other two judges, Vincent and a bald, monocle wearing appraiser named Lebrante, were further down. The crowd of customers had been augmented by curious onlookers from all over the castle, so that the restaurant was filled nearly to bursting. Flik spotted Riou and Nanami, Humphrey, Futch, and the ever-roomless Zamza. Even Shu had come down from pondering strategies to enjoy the spectacle.

From somewhere, possibly a storage closet, someone had produced an announcer, who was introducing the judges. Flik barely managed not to blush when he was described as "a man with good common sense." He was still beaming when the two opposing chefs were brought out and the rules explained. The loud boom of a gong startled him, and the two combatants settled down into the process of cooking up their dishes.

Sitting in his chair, Flik felt the excitement of the introduction wear off, replaced by hunger. He still hadn't had lunch, and the smells from various bubbling pots were trying his discipline. Using all the restraint he could muster, he swallowed his saliva and didn't leap at the cooks.

"Go Flik, go!" Nina shouted from the audience.

"Idiot," Meg countered, "Flik isn't competing. He's just a judge."

"So what? He's still my Flik!"

Flik slouched down into the yellow collar of his shirt and tried to ignore the snickering from the onlookers. His stomach growled in displeasure.

He was so distracted that he almost didn't notice when the first appetizer was set before him. He didn't even know if this was Hai Yo's or Ryuko's. It was fried calamari served with a spicy tomato sauce. Flik didn't have a particular love of seafood, but hungry as he was, he started popping squid rings into his mouth. In truth, he hardly tasted them, hardly even chewed them, so eager was he to sate his hunger.

"Whoa!" Viktor shouted. "Slow down there, Flik. Save some for the other judges."

"Seems like one of the judges really likes the challenger's appetizer," the announcer commented.

Abashed, Flik passed the plate over to Viktor and tried to think of how he was going to judge this. In the end, he gave it a three of five. He was too busy anticipating the next dishes to keep track of the scoring, but he got the feeling that Ryuko did well with his appetizer. More courses followed; next was a garden salad with a sweet, pinkish Harmonia style dressing. There were Karayan barbecued ribs and the Zexen delicacy, stuffed heart of stag. These earned scores of three, four, and five, respectively.

Flik was feeling very satisfied by the time the dessert course rolled around. The announcer was updating the scoring before the next dish was brought out. Apparently, Hai Yo was only ahead by two points. Ryuko had a confident grin on his face, while Hai Yo looked subdued.

"The challenger seems very happy, given that he is behind," the announcer said. "What dessert has he prepared, that he thinks he's won already?"

"It's an old family secret," Ryuko responded. "I give you…the amazing tempura!"

Flik scratched his head, wondering why he would serve battered, fried shrimp for dessert, but when the dish arrived and he took his first bite, he _was_ amazed. There were no shrimp anywhere, but instead it was battered, fried…vanilla ice cream. The combination of flavors and textures was unusual, but not bad. He gave it a four. When the scoring was tabulated, Ryuko was now ahead by thirteen points, with only Hai Yo's dessert to go.

The pudding was brought out, chocolate goodness with perfectly sculpted whipped cream on top. The tension built as each judge finished his allotted portion. Flik decided to give this a five, and held up the card with that number. He couldn't see any of the other cards, but he heard the audience give a gasp.

"It appears that our champion has won this cook-off, by one point."

Hai Yo nodded, the smile back on his face. "Well cooked, Ryuko. You have shown yourself equal to any chef today, and shown that I mustn't grow complacent in my own cooking." He stepped forward to shake the hand of his opponent.

Before he got there, Ryuko pulled out a long, slender dagger. "I failed, just as my brother did. For three hundred years, my family has practiced this glorious art, only to be defeated by an upstart with no history."

Hai Yo lunged to try and stop the dagger. "Don't do that! Don't waste your life!" Flik jumped up, kicking out his chair, and leapt the table. Viktor, more directly, pushed his section aside.

All three men were too late. The dagger pointed at his chest, Ryuko calmly said, "What future is there for me and my family, to be defeated so?" With a grunt, he drove the blade home, even as Hai Yo reached his side. Flik couldn't help but turn aside. Blood on the battlefield didn't bother him, but this was different. He heard several people in the audience scream.

Order was restored quickly. Shu stood up and suggested that people ought to head for the exits, and the restaurant cleared out. Someone, probably some unlucky soldiers, was tasked with removing Ryuko's body. Viktor and Flik remained behind, helping to clean up the mess. Hai Yo stood motionless in the midst of this, staring hard at the spot where Ryuko had killed himself.

Eventually, as Viktor was setting the last table into its right location, the chef shook himself and quietly said, "I didn't want him to do that. Why did he?"

Flik put his hand on Hai Yo's shoulder. "It's not your fault."

"But it is." Hai Yo pulled off his hat, wiping at his eyes with his other hand. "I should leave here. If they don't know where to find me, then maybe tragedies like this can be avoided."

"No!" Viktor and Flik looked at each other. They'd both shouted the same exclamation at the same time.

"What good would that do?" Viktor added, scooting a chair into place.

"Well, at least people wouldn't die." He glanced at Viktor before continuing, "You two are soldiers, so it probably doesn't bother you, but I can't stand seeing someone die right before my eyes."

"You're wrong there," Viktor countered. "I don't like having to kill people." He sighed heavily, adjusting the position of the chair. "If you believe what you're doing is right, then you've got to stand up to them, these other Grand Chefs-"

"Grand Masters," Hai Yo corrected.

"Whatever." Viktor jammed the chair hard against the table and finally let go. "The point is, if you believe in something, you've got to take action, not run away. Otherwise, you're just spouting empty words."

Hai Yo looked very sour at the lecture. "I'll have to give it some thought. It's so difficult to fight when you're alone."

"But you're not alone," Flik answered. "You've got lots of support within the army. Not only that, but I'm sure there are other Black Dragon chefs who share your point of view. They're all simply waiting for someone to take a stand. You're one of the four highest; shouldn't that someone be you?"

Footsteps echoed from the entrance of the restaurant, interrupting the conversation. A messenger stood in the doorway, and his face brightened when he saw Viktor and Flik. "Lord Riou is convening a council in the great hall, and he would like you two to be present."

Viktor clicked his tongue. "Business calls. Cheer up, Hai Yo. It never does anyone any good to be down all the time. Let's go, Flik."

Leaving Hai Yo behind, Flik felt the excitement growing in his stomach. Something important must've happened for Riou to call them before tomorrow's briefing. He and Viktor practically jogged through the halls of Dunan Castle, but still were the last to arrive.

"I should've guessed that you'd remain behind to clean up," Shu said as the two of them entered. Besides the strategist, Riou and Nanami were there, as were Kiba, Ridley, Freed, Fitcher, Apple, and Teresa.

"Guessed?" Viktor quipped, panting. "I thought you knew everything, o great strategist."

Shu's eyebrow twitched. "Even I can be discomforted at the sight of blood. You'll have to forgive me for not thinking properly."

"Can we not talk about that?" Nanami asked, shifting uncomfortably as she sat on the steps of the dais.

"Of course. Now that we are all here, I will relate the news. My negotiations with the Highland Army have borne fruit; they wish to send an emissary to Dunan Castle to lay the groundwork for a peace conference."

Flik swallowed. No one said anything for a moment, as they were all absorbing the news. Finally, Kiba smiled and said, "This is great news, Lord Riou. I believe you should accept at once."

Ridley growled, baring his fangs. "And I say we should be cautious. Who knows what sort of scheme they are preparing?"

"It's just an envoy," Fitcher pleaded, hands outstretched, stepping between the two men. "It can't hurt to listen to his words."

Ridley barked in displeasure, making Fitcher cringe. "It would be a waste of all the lives lost if we don't liberate all of Jowston!"

Riou walked down from the dais to stand in front of the three men. "Wouldn't it also be a waste to lose more lives for land that we might win back through words? I've always said that I'm fighting to bring peace back to this land. Now that the opportunity for peace is before me, I must be brave and take action on my beliefs. Don't you think so, Ridley?"

Flik wondered if the kobold would storm from the room, but Ridley held his peace, mulling Riou's question. Finally, he replied, "There is honor in lives saved, but you must be careful, my lord. The Highlanders were duplicitous even before Luca Blight came to power."

"I understand your concerns," Riou said. "Still, can we afford to lose this chance for peace because we were afraid? Ridley, I know that you are no coward." The kobold blinked heavily in surprise at the implication, but Riou continued speaking. "Now is the time for us to be bold."

Ridley nodded slowly. "Yes, it is better to be brave and seize the initiative when you can. Very well, I have no more objections, Lord Riou."

Riou scanned the room. "Does anyone else have anything to say on this matter?" No one spoke, but Flik, out of the corner of his eye, saw a look of deep concern on Shu's face. It was so astonishing that Flik was about to remark, but the strategist's expression changed so quickly back to neutral that he wondered if he'd only imagined it.

Riou climbed back up the dais, turning slightly to face Shu. "Shu, tell the Highlanders that I will meet with their envoy."

Shu's smile was slight. "I will convey your desire. The emissary should arrive tomorrow morning, so let us all be prepared."


	67. Chapter 67 Whatever is Needed

**Chapter 67 – Whatever is Needed**

The following morning was hot with a late summer wind from out of the south. Flik blinked sweat out of his eyes as he waited, along with nine other men from his unit, on the road south from Dunan Castle. The Highland envoy was expected at any moment, and Flik with his men were to be his honor guard, but there was no sign of him yet.

Flik felt several conflicting emotions about the possibility of peace. Many of the soldiers were already making plans – some to return to their farms, others to get married. Kiba's Highlanders spoke wistfully of being able to get an amnesty and return to their homes. Gilbert said he thought of returning to Zexen and retiring from the mercenary business.

Several of Flik's own men had asked him questions in that direction. He didn't blame them, after all, his decisions would affect their livelihood. The problem was that he had no idea what he would do in peacetime. He nearly laughed, thinking about it. Hadn't he wondered about that many months ago, before he met Riou? He knew what the answer was. He'd follow Viktor, and together they'd find some adventure or cause that needed them. That was just the way of things.

"Commander, someone approaches from the Highland side." Rossgard pointed down the road, where Flik could make out several riders nearing. At their head was a man in a long black coat with white trim, a man that Flik had met several times before, both on the field of battle and off.

Culgan bowed slightly in his saddle. "It is an honor to greet you once again, Flik of the Blue Lightning."

"You are the envoy?"

Culgan shrugged, smiling in a friendly manner. "They seem to believe that I am best suited for it, so here I am." Breaking off from Flik, he turned to address one of the soldiers following him. "You all may return to camp. I have no further need of your services."

The guard captain gave him a concerned look. "Are you sure, Lord Culgan? I wouldn't want you to go into the enemy's stronghold unprotected."

Culgan gave a short laugh. "I do not think they have any such reception planed for me. Furthermore, I don't want to impose on them any more than I have to. I will be fine on my own."

"As you say." The captain wheeled his horse around and, with the rest of the Highland soldiers, rode towards their camp.

Flik led his men back up the road, he and Culgan at the head of the column. For a while, nothing was said, and Flik took the chance to study his opposite. Culgan did not have the look of a defeated adversary. The fact that he'd sent back his escort said something about his level of confidence. He rode tall in the saddle, casually scanning the countryside, completely at ease. Nothing in his bearing suggested that the Highlanders were going to capitulate quickly at the peace table.

As the city and Dunan Castle came into view, Flik said, "You fought well. You pushed us to the brink several times."

Culgan suddenly blinked, as if coming out of a reverie, but his tone was diplomatic when he replied, "I suspect that we didn't push hard enough, in my opinion. We underestimated your resolve and suffered for it."

Flik kept smiling, though he didn't feel it. "You shouldn't underestimate our resolve now."

"I assure you, we won't."

They rode on in silence for a few more paces before Flik grimaced and turned to face Culgan more fully. Trying to restrain his temper, he said, "I don't understand all of this posturing. If you want peace so badly, why don't you just continue to pull back to the border and be done with it?"

If anything, Culgan's smile became more friendly. "If it were that simple, I suppose we would do so, but things are more complicated than that. An outsider like you might not understand, but there are border issues to settle and the potential for indemnities cannot be overlooked." He glanced away, out over the lake, and added, "The biggest factor might be prestige. The citizens of Highland would never accept that we retreat and concede defeat. Hence, a negotiated settlement is needed."

"But you did lose!" Flik shouted. He could feel the blood rising in his face.

Culgan was imperturbable. "Funny, I don't think we did. Our army is still intact." He gestured over the lake. "It's still out there, beyond the horizon. It still outnumbers yours."

Flik nearly shouted again, but managed to recover his bearing. "If that's your attitude, why are you even here? What hope does Riou have of negotiating anything?"

Now Culgan met Flik's gaze. "I assure you, if negotiations go as planned, you will have peace in Jowston before the trees begin to turn."

Flik chewed the inside of his lip, but didn't respond. How could Culgan be so cocky after losing his king in battle? That attitude didn't make any sense. He tried thinking about the situation from Culgan's point of view. If Highland didn't feel defeated, then why retreat and offer to negotiate? Maybe they expected Riou to concede territory in exchange for peace. He shook his head and pressed on, leading them through the south gate and into the city. There was little point in worrying about terms before Highland made an offer.

Inside the walls, people began to notice Culgan immediately. Rumors that Highland would send an envoy had been spreading through the city, and now a crowd gathered to gawk. They weren't particularly hostile, but it wasn't friendly either. A couple of Winger youths swooped in low, buzzing over Culgan's head. To his credit, he didn't flinch, though his horse turned skittish. He coughed once and got his mount under control.

Once Culgan's horse was stabled, Flik led him to one of the side doors of the castle, away from prying eyes. There was no avoiding the entrance hall, however. When the two men entered, it was bustling, as always. In one corner of the room, a cluster of people had gathered around Viki. There was a bright flash of light, and in an instant they had all disappeared, teleported somewhere. Over by the Tablet of Stars, one of the maids was asking Luc if he could help with the cleaning. With a sigh, he lifted both hands and a gust of wind shook the dust off of every surface. It swirled around in the middle of the room before finally herding all of the collected grime into the bin the maid was carrying.

"Lively place you've got," Culgan remarked.

"Thanks," Flik replied, trying to hurry along before Culgan saw anything else that Highland didn't know about.

Luckily no one else intercepted Flik, wanting to tell him all about the New State Army's newest secret weapon right where Culgan could hear. They climbed the stairs, and Oulan ushered them into the great hall. Culgan only blinked twice upon seeing her, then recovered his composure.

They entered the room. Shu, Riou, and Nanami were up the dais. The others –Apple, Teresa, Viktor, Kiba, Klaus, Ridley, Freed, and Fitcher – were arranged in a half-circle below the steps.

"Welcome to Dunan Castle, Lord Culgan of Redcliff," Shu said. Flik was brought back to another negotiation, in South Window. He hoped that his one would turn out better.

Culgan did not immediately respond, but stared intently at Riou. The moment stretched, and Riou, looking uncomfortable, asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I have seen you from across the battlefield, Lord Riou, but never face to face. I think that I begin to understand your power a little better, now that I see it up close. You and my lord Jowy Blight are very much alike."

"Jowy Blight?" Nanami murmured. "Could that be our Jowy?"

Culgan addressed Nanami's question almost as if he were speaking to an old friend. "Indeed. He has officially wed Lady Jillia Blight, now the sole surviving heir of the royal family. You two are his friends, and he personally entreated me to convey to you how much he had hoped that you would've been able to attend the ceremony. Unfortunately, circumstances rendered that impossible."

Nanami thought about this for a moment. "Does that mean he wants some sort of wedding gift from us?"

Shu coughed discretely, signaling his displeasure in the turn of the conversation. Culgan nodded, but continued as if he were answering Nanami's question. "No. The reason that I am here today is to extend a formal offer of armistice between Highland and the Jowston Alliance. With the death of Luca Blight, the new king of Highland, Jowy Blight, desires to explore options for ending this terrible war."

"Did you say Jowy's the king of Highland?"

It took Flik a moment to realize that the voice had been his, but the question could've come from almost anyone in the room. Only Shu didn't seem genuinely surprised, but then he rarely betrayed any of his inner thoughts.

"Is the war over?" Nanami asked.

"There is the matter of negotiations," Culgan answered. "However, if both you and he truly desire peace, I think an accommodation can be made."

"Wait!" Kiba interrupted, striding towards Culgan. "What of Lady Jillia Blight? How is it that this upstart rules in her place?" His tone was distressed, his face agitated. Klaus came up behind him to put a restraining hand on his shoulder, but Kiba pressed forward to confront Culgan.

"I was not present at the coronation, but I can assure you that the transfer of power was handled through the normal legal procedures. There is precedent for a Blight queen to cede ruling authority to her husband, even if he hasn't a drop of royal blood. Furthermore, Jowy Blight has no children yet, so the issue of protecting the royal bloodline is moot." Culgan's calm face was in stark contrast to Kiba, who was bristling. "Does that answer your concern, Lord Windamier?"

It clearly did not, but Kiba allowed himself to be pulled back by Klaus. Shu took a few steps down the dais to speak with Culgan, before anyone else took control of the conversation. "So you do not have the authority to negotiate directly with us. Very well, where does Jowy Blight suggest that we hold the peace conference? Surely he doesn't expect Riou to come to L'Renouille like a supplicant?"

"Lord Blight has instructed me to suggest the Conference Hall in Muse City. It would be more proper to be negotiating with the mayor of that city, but that is no longer possible. Therefore, he requests that Lord Riou come, representing Muse, South Window, and Two Rivers. Lady Teresa Wisemail can represent Greenhill, of course."

Shu put his hands behind his back. "We will need to discuss this. However, there is one thing that I can assure you of – the New State Army no longer recognizes the old alliance structure. If we negotiate with Jowy Blight, it will be for one peace, as one nation."

Culgan's eyebrows twitched, but nothing more. "You may claim as you like. Whether you have the wherewithal to spin those claims into truth remains to be seen."

Shu climbed back up the dais before speaking again. "Is there anything else that needs to be covered, Lord of Redcliff? Otherwise, I must ask you to depart to the guest quarters while we discuss your offer."

"There is one other matter that I would like to raise," Culgan said. He paused momentarily, but when Shu gave no sign, continued, "As you are aware, the Kingdom of Highland generously released all of the Alliance prisoners in its possession. We were hoping for reciprocity on your part."

Before Shu could answer, Kiba spoke up, his manner harsh. "All Highland soldiers in the New State Army are under my jurisdiction. I shall release them to their homes only when I am satisfied that their future interests are safeguarded."

"Worried about your actions, Lord Windamier?" Culgan's face remained polite, but his tone suggested a smirk. "You have no reason for anxiety. Lord Blight is prepared to offer a full amnesty for all Highland soldiers and officers who, because of Luca Blight's incompetent leadership, were forced to fight against their homeland. I can assure you that your own wife, the Lady Eliza, is unharmed."

"And that is only because she is Harmonian nobility," Kiba barked back. "It wouldn't have gone well with you to upset your only ally in this war."

Culgan didn't reply to this, but spoke again to Shu. "I can see that we will find no satisfaction in this regard. So be it." He produced a sealed envelope from a pocket on the inside of his coat. "Lord Riou, this is a letter from Lord Jowy Blight, from one friend to another. It may be hard to believe, but I know that he earnestly desires peace in this land. That is one of the reasons why I have pledged my loyalty to him, and the reason I can walk alone into the stronghold of my enemy to speak with you. I only hope that you will prove as noble in spirit as Lord Jowy described you."

Nanami practically jumped down the steps to grab the envelope. "What's it say?"

Culgan smiled. To Flik, it appeared to be his first completely sincere display of emotion since entering the room. "I do not know. Things that would only have meaning between friends, I suspect." He took a step back from the dais. "I shall leave you to your deliberations."

There was silence after Culgan departed. Nanami looked at the letter feverishly and clutched it to her chest. Riou glanced at his sister once, then closed his eyes. Shu turned completely away, gazing at the wall behind the dais.

Viktor started tapping one foot and, when it was obvious to Flik that he couldn't stand the waiting anymore, spoke up. "Well, so he wants us to go to Muse, right? What do you think, Riou?"

Riou didn't answer. He almost didn't appear to be awake, with his eyes closed. Hesitantly, Klaus said, "My first instinct is to suspect a trap."

"No!" Nanami interrupted, surprising Flik, and apparently herself, with the strength of her voice. She squeezed the letter and added, "Jowy's not like that. He's not going to betray his best friend."

Klaus looked to Riou. "Jowy Blight has Leon Silverberg as his strategist. This is the man who orchestrated the burning of Kalekka, in his own country, to aid his king in prosecuting a war. We mustn't underestimate what he's capable of."

"But this is Jowy who's in charge, not some stupid strategist," Nanami argued. "He didn't try to stop us in Greenhill when he had the chance. Why would he try a trap now?"

"The circumstances are different now," Fitcher replied. "Before he was simply a general under Luca Blight. Now he's got a whole nation to worry about, with many competing factors weighing on his mind."

"It's still a great chance," Apple said. "Highland's armies are depleted from the constant campaigning. Right now, I think we could sign a peace treaty with very favorable terms. If we hesitate, they will only use this chance to get stronger."

Ridley's muzzle was scrunched up into a snarl. "What if this is a trap, and we lose Lord Riou? I've said this before, but we can't trust the Highlanders to keep any promises. If they are weak, we ought to go over onto the offensive before they get any stronger."

Kiba frowned deeply, shaking his head. "If it were Lady Jillia Blight who was ruling, I would've pushed for peace, but now I am inclined to agree with Lord Ridley. This new ruler is an unknown factor to me, possibly a puppet of the major nobles and the officers of the army. How else could the son of such a minor house be permitted to rule?"

"That brings up a good point," Freed declared. "We know so little of Jowy. What about you, Flik? You and Viktor had dealings with Jowy for some time. Your opinion might help us reach a conclusion."

Riou's eyes opened. Both he and Nanami stared intently at Flik. Under their combined stares, and the sweat pouring down his back, he tried to put his thoughts in order. Focusing, he met Riou's gaze and said, "I'd like very much to believe in Jowy. I can see that you two have a very strong friendship. And Nanami is right; he did let us go in Greenhill. However, I must advise you to be wary, Riou. Whatever his reasons were, he was the one who murdered Lady Anabelle. That alone shows that he can be duplicitous. Besides, he seems to have willingly worked with Luca Blight and profited greatly from that relationship. His goals may be admirable, but the path that he took to achieve them isn't."

He looked around the room. Viktor was nodding slowly in agreement. Most of the others were digesting his arguments. Nanami had a frown on her face. Riou's was unreadable. Shu still had his back to the entire debate. That struck Flik as very odd. Here they were, making an incredibly important decision, and he was ignoring it.

"I think it's time for everyone to calm down," Lady Teresa said, stepping into the middle of the discussion, arms to either side. She looked up at Riou. "Ultimately, it is your decision. We must support you, no matter what that is. If you decide to go to Muse, then I will accompany you. If you decide to march out in battle, then I will lead my men alongside you. I'm sure that we all will."

Riou nodded. "I'm going to Muse. I must take the chance for peace. I have to believe in Jowy, or else I have to sever my friendship with him." Nanami flinched at those words. "How can I do that without at least seeing him one more time, face to face?"

No one raised an objection. Flik knew that Riou's reasoning was based almost purely on emotion, but he couldn't fault him for that. He'd risked his own life many times in the name of friendship, and Riou was obviously willing to do the same. Only a strategist like Leon Silverberg would ever willingly choose to cut himself off so completely from human feelings.

Shu turned around. His expression was hard to read. Flik might've said that he even looked slightly pained. "We must all work hard to make Lord Riou's vision a reality. I shall help you iron out the negotiating points, and then we must set the itinerary for travelling. Fitcher, if you would summon Lord Culgan back. We must inform him of our assent."

The afternoon passed in a bustle of activity, most of which Flik worked hard to avoid. For dinner, he and Viktor went down to Leona's bar. Though she didn't run it as a restaurant anymore, she was willing to cook up food for old friends. The bar was actually quite full tonight. The two of them were sharing their table with Humphrey and Futch. Rina was at another table, ignoring Sheena's rather obvious pick-up lines. Anita and Valeria were up by the bar. The two women were apparently rivals, though Flik had never seen any evidence of that. Instead, they appeared to be chatting like old friends.

After serving Viktor and Flik their food, Leona and Barbara pulled up chairs and joined the men at the table. Leona took a drag on her long-necked pipe and looked thoughtfully at the two of them. "So, is this peace deal for real, or what? I don't like fighting, but Highland had better pay for what they did to Toto and Ryube, and all the other places they've hurt."

Viktor shrugged. "Riou was in East Muse. I'm sure he remembers what they did."

"Jowy was there, too," Flik added. He paused then, unsure of the argument. Viktor was frowning. Jowy had been there, but in the end, he chose to go over to the Highland side, chose to murder Anabelle. Flik was sure Viktor still held that against him. The two boys had shared that tragedy, but had ended up on differing paths. "Hopefully the common ground will help them reach a deal," Flik ended.

Barbara shook her head. "He seemed so devoted to Pilika, both at the fort and in Muse. I don't understand what changed to make him abandon her and join the Highlanders."

"People…always hide things," Humphrey said. He took a swig from his mug and didn't add anything further. He didn't have to. Flik was one of the few people who knew about Humphrey's past, about how the former soldier had turned on his commander after Kalekka and killed him.

The table fell into silence. Flik watched Futch feeding pieces of meat to Bright. The white dragon hatchling was growing larger and more active with each passing day. Futch often had to use both hands to restrain him when he got too exuberant. Now was not one of those times, however. The young dragon seemed to sense the mood and simply ate the proffered food.

Some time later, after a meal and more than a few mugs of beer, Viktor and Flik were making their way back through the halls of the castle to their rooms. Though there was always some activity going on at all hours of the day, the second story living quarters were quiet and dark as they made their way, somewhat unsteadily, down the hall.

"Gentlemen," a deep voice said.

Flik's body twitched in surprise and he nearly cried out. He fumbled for his sword, slowed by both drink and darkness. He could hear Viktor struggling likewise over to his right. "Who's there?" Flik asked the shadows.

"Not so loud," the shadow answered back, tone dropping slightly. "A messenger, nothing more. Follow me."

"How can we follow you if we can't see you?" Viktor answered, getting angrier by the word.

"You have let your senses become clouded," the voice continued. Flik thought he could detect soft footsteps. "Clear your mind and focus." Something moved by the nearest window, and Flik turned that way. He could see the shadow of a man standing there, outlined against the faint light of the night sky. It was the shadow of a tall and well-built man.

"I see you," Flik affirmed. "At least, I think I see you."

"Where is he?" Viktor shouted. "Let me at him!"

"Then follow," the voice commanded. "I have wasted much time with you two." He slipped away from the window.

Flik squinted into the darkness and thought he could make the shadow out. "This way," he said to Viktor. "Follow me."

Viktor blundered along behind them. "Why are we following him when we don't know who he is?"

"Names are unimportant in my line of work, only completing my duties. Now, be silent." Viktor didn't speak any words, but he did grumble under his breath. The shadow appeared to let that slide and the procession through the night continued. They climbed up several flights of stairs, heading towards one of the few areas in Dunan Castle where the repairs weren't complete. Flik was curious, but also apprehensive. If someone wished to commit a murder, this would be the place.

He slowed his steps until Viktor was alongside him, then leaned in and whispered, "Be ready for anything. I don't know what this fellow is planning."

"I am taking you to a meeting," the shadow replied, startling Flik. "If I'd wished to end your lives, I would've done so without the preamble."

"I thought we were supposed to be silent," Viktor groused.

The shadow sighed. "I was told you were likely to be insolent. Never mind, we have arrived. He's waiting for you out there."

Out there was through an arch and out into the night air. For a moment, Flik struggled with the sensation of vertigo, not being able to see anything. Then he realized that he'd stepped out onto a fairly substantial balcony. He'd seen it before, from the ground level, but had never visited it. Viktor stepped up beside Flik. Neither moon was visible, but by the light of the stars and the few remaining city lights, Flik could just barely see a table, and a man sitting by it.

"Good evening, Viktor and Flik," Shu's voice said. "I'm sorry to divert you so far from your rest."

"Is that you, Shu?" Viktor asked. Flik could almost hear him squinting, trying to make out the figure in the darkness.

Shu's voice turned deadly serious. "Sit down. We have things to discuss and I, too, would like to get to bed eventually."

There was no refusing the command. Flik edged forward and found one of the two empty chairs. Sitting down, he detected a faint warmth on the seat. Had Shu been speaking to other people earlier?

"Okay, we're here," Viktor replied. "You obviously didn't call us out here for a pleasant chat, so get on with it."

But Shu didn't, not immediately. He spent minutes studying them. If they'd been in daylight, Flik would've concluded that he was reading their faces. Finally, the strategist shook his head slowly and let out a sigh. "You two are my most headstrong generals, but also the most innovative. I suppose it wouldn't be any other way."

The admission, along with the hesitation, shocked Flik. He stood up and leaned over the table, trying to see Shu's face. "You don't trust us? What's this about, Shu?"

There was something close to desperation in Shu's voice. "I trust you, but I need you two to trust me, now more than ever. What I tell you here cannot be told to anyone else, not even to Lord Riou. Especially not to Lord Riou."

Feeling numb despite the warm air, Flik staggered back into his chair, sitting down hard. Viktor thumped his hand on the table. "You're telling us to betray Riou? You can count me out!"

"No!" Shu responded, voice full of emotion. "I would never betray Lord Riou, but…you must trust me on this. For the sake of the peace, for the sake of everything, you must trust me."

Flik could hear frustration in Viktor's breathing, anxiety in Shu's. Whatever this was that Shu was playing at, it was very dangerous indeed. Vertigo threatened to take Flik's senses again, and he squeezed his eyes shut to rid himself of the sensation.

Viktor sighed harshly. "All right, strategist, I trust you."

"And you, Flik?"

Flik took a deep breath and opened his eyes. "You have my silence. Tell us what this is about."

Surprisingly, Viktor had already deduced the answer. "It's the negotiations with Highland, right? You think they're going to spring a trap?"

"I know they're going to spring a trap."

"Why would they do that?" Flik asked, again leaning towards Shu.

"The reasoning is simple. Highland can no longer overcome the New State Army by sheer force, but if they capture Lord Riou through subterfuge, then the war is practically won." Shu's voice was deceptively calm, talking about schemes and betrayals. "Do you really think that Leon Silverberg's plot to have Jowy overthrow Luca Blight was done so that Highland could declare defeat and march home?"

"No, I suppose not," Flik reluctantly agreed. "Okay, then why all of this sneaking around? Let's just tell Riou that there's a trap and that he shouldn't go."

"Lord Riou wants to go. Do you think that I could convince him otherwise? I have only the power of logic to muster against all of the force of his friendship with Jowy. Even I know when I can't win." Flik thought he detected a faint laugh at the end of Shu's last statement.

"What if we restrained him?" Viktor suggested. "Physically kept him from going somehow?"

"It wouldn't work," Shu responded. "It would only make him resent us. No, tomorrow Lord Riou will sail for Muse City, and he will accept any risk to try and talk to Jowy once more."

"You're not going to let him go unprepared?" Viktor pleaded. "You've got a plan, right? That's why you called us here."

Shu hesitated again, long enough for Flik to add, "You _do_ have a plan, don't you?"

"I do. And it is that plan that you must not tell anyone about, especially Lord Riou." He leaned forward and explained the details.

By the time he was finished, Flik's mouth was dry and he was shaking with anger and horror. "You can't ask us to do this!" he shouted. "There's no way-"

"Then Lord Riou sails off for captivity, or death, and all of our hopes are dashed," Shu concluded softly.

Flik looked through the darkness, trying to see Viktor. He was sure Viktor was doing the same. "Riou's going to hate us," Viktor muttered.

"If he does, then I will take the blame," Shu answered. Again, the ferocity in his voice surprised Flik. "I said that I would do whatever is needed in order to win this war. If that means that I must earn Lord Riou's unending hatred, I will do so." He stood up, and Flik could clearly see his hands shaking, gripping the tabletop. "Can I trust you two to carry out this plan? Can I trust you two to help me save Lord Riou?"

Flik's heart was pounding louder than the surf below. Carefully he stood up, and was aware of Viktor doing likewise.

"Let's do this," Viktor whispered.

"Yes," Flik murmured.

"For Lord Riou's sake," Shu said under his breath, "I will do whatever is needed."


	68. Chapter 68 One Lie

**Chapter 68 – One Lie**

When the diplomatic mission prepared to sail out of Dunan Harbor the following morning, Flik felt no better about the plan than he had the previous night. It had been hard to keep a civil face when Culgan had greeted him at breakfast. It had been hard to smile when Riou and Nanami spoke cheerfully about the prospect of seeing Jowy again. But the most difficult duty of all was to stand there impassively while Shu suggested that Pilika join them on this trip.

"I don't know," Nanami said, looking thoughtful. "These are going to be serious negotiations, right? I think Pilika would be bored."

"Nonsense," Shu replied, putting on a smile that made Flik turn away and cringe. "If there is going to be peace, who better to benefit from that than one who has lost so much during this conflict? Pilika will surely want to see Jowy as soon as possible." Flik's guts twisted; he wanted to bend over and retch into the water. Better yet, he wanted to walk over and punch Shu.

Viktor's hand patted his shoulder. "Easy there, Flik," he murmured. "I don't like this any better than you. I don't think Shu likes it either, whatever his face says. Remember last night."

Flik didn't say anything. He did manage to look Shu in the eye when the strategist walked over to the two of them. "Generals Viktor and Flik, I entrust the duty of commanding Lord Riou's honor guard into your capable hands. You two have worked for peace in this land longer than any of us, and I know that you will fulfill your duty with honor."

"Thank you!" Viktor replied.

"Thank you," Flik mumbled, feeling another twitch in his stomach. He tried not to grimace.

After only a few more false wishes for hope out of Shu, the two galleys sailed. The lead ship was for the diplomatic party, including Viktor and Flik. The trailing ship contained the honor guard, selected from Flik's mounted archers. He had not yet told them the true purpose of their selection. Better to let them retain hope for a few more hours, Flik decided.

As they sailed out, a flock of Winghordes took to the air, maintaining a parallel course to the two ships. They took dives at the water, sending up sprays of foam at anyone who got too close to the railing. Some of them also came up with fish in their talons. One of those Wingers was Chaco. He took part in the roughhousing for a time and then settled down into the crow's nest of the lead galley, apparently content to do nothing but sun himself. Culgan, seeing all of this, laughed good-naturedly.

Flik was sure this was a part of Shu's plan too, though he wasn't brave enough to seek Chaco out and ask. The Winger probably wouldn't tell him anyway, not if he'd been sworn to secrecy as Flik was. Instead, Flik kept up his false front of happiness and tried to spend the day in mindless, trivial tasks.

At one point, while mending his blue cape, he overheard Culgan speaking. "I've seen a little of Kyaro." Flik glanced up from his work to see Culgan, Riou, Nanami, and Pilika seated near the prow of the ship, looking off to the north. "It is a beautiful city, and I'm sure you'll be able to return home once this is all settled."

"Where are you from, Mister Culgan?" Nanami asked.

He laughed. "You certainly don't have to call me 'Mister Culgan.' It makes me feel older than I want to." His tone turned conversational, and he pointed off to the distance. "Redcliff is northeast of Kyaro, on the other side of the mountains, right on the coast. My grandfather owned the iron mines there and used the profits to buy his way into the nobility. Honestly, it's as bleak as hell. I'll let my brothers squabble over the inheritance."

"So, you like being a soldier?" Riou asked.

"I've seen more of the world than I would've if I'd stayed at home. I've had a greater impact on that world, too. And…if everything pans out right, I'll end up higher in society."

"But, do you like being a soldier?" Riou asked, more intently.

Culgan looked away from Riou. "I won't say that I hate it. Sometimes, you do what you must. That's all." He stood up abruptly. "If you will excuse me, Lord Riou, but the motion of the ship upsets my stomach. I think I shall retire to my quarters." He turned and started walking towards the stairs to the hold, which had been converted into a number of rooms. At that moment Flik got a good look at the Highlander's eyes, and growled at what he saw. He took a step, intending to confront Culgan, but was suddenly yanked back, out of Culgan's line of sight.

"What the hell are you trying to do?" Viktor whispered fiercely. "Now's not the time to do something stupid and destroy the plan."

"He knows, damn him!" Flik whispered back. "He won't be so smug once I've got a sword in his guts." He tried to break out of Viktor's hold and, as usual, failed miserably.

Only after Culgan had descended the stairs did Viktor relent. "Yeah, he probably does know," Viktor said. "Jowy trusts him, the same way Shu trusts us. If you want to wipe the smile off his face that badly, wait until we've sprung Shu's plan. I hate it, but it's the only way I can see everything working out for us."

Flik let himself calm down, puffing out anger in short bursts. "Okay. I hear you. I just…despise all this insincerity. That's all."

"You were never the one for trickery, that's for sure." Viktor laughed and whacked him on the back. "That's why I got all the missions that required sneaking around and breaking into places."

Flik shook his head. "I don't see how that works. Look at how big you are, Viktor. How can you sneak into anywhere?"

"Sneaking is a state of mind," Viktor replied, theatrically throwing his hands up into the air. "It is a grand and noble art that requires the perfect balance of tension and relaxation that can only be honed through years and years of sneaking around."

"I'm sorry I asked."

In the late afternoon, the north shore of Dunan Lake came into view. Flik had not seen the town of Coronet since the night of his hasty retreat, now a little more than four months ago. The most striking change was that there were no ships on the water except for a pair of patrolling galleys. Culgan remained in his room, so Flik couldn't ask him about this, but it was obvious that Highland meant to make it impossible for people to flee from Muse to South Window.

Culgan finally came up to the deck as the two galleys from Dunan Castle coasted into position along adjacent wharves. "It has been some time since you were in Coronet," he said to Riou. "Tonight, you and your company shall dine with me in the mayor's mansion. Your soldiers will be quartered in the general barracks. I trust this is sufficient?"

"It is," Riou answered. Flik turned aside and coughed, covering his frown. Knowing what the Highlanders were intending, he didn't want Riou any further from his soldiers than he had to be, but raising a complaint now would only draw suspicion. Viktor saw his action and nodded. Now was the time for restraint.

A crowd awaited them as they stood at the top of the gangplank, again reminding Flik of the hasty departure, except that this time it was Highland soldiers pushing back a mob of excited civilians. And that this time it wasn't the boats they were trying to reach, but Riou. The line of soldiers bent as people surged forward, sticking hands between gaps to try and touch him.

"Lord Riou, send those Highlanders packing!"

"Drive them all the way back to the border!"

Riou acknowledged them by waving and smiling. Nanami seemed overwhelmed by the attention. Culgan kept his expression diplomatic, especially when the crowd switched to yelling abuse at him.

"Go home, you Highland dog! I hope you and your family come down with a pox!"

Chaco, who'd spent most of the day resting in the crow's nest, came awake and glided down to the foot of the plank, his talons clicking on the flagstones. "Allow me to go first," he said, giving a mocking half-bow.

"What're you doing here?" Nanami asked. "The rest of your friends left hours ago. Shouldn't you be with them?"

Chaco bowed again and put on a courtly tone. "My Lady, permit me, the bravest fighter in all the Winghorde, to be your escort in this diplomatic mission." He switched back to bantering normally. "I'll even look after Pilika for you. You wouldn't want her running around in the middle of negotiations."

Nanami sniffed. "I can look after myself, and Pilika too. I don't need your help."

"Well, I'll hang around anyway, as long as Riou lets me. Maybe these negotiations will be more interesting than they look."

In the end, Riou did let Chaco remain. After descending the gangplank, most of the diplomatic group went ahead with Culgan, but Viktor and Flik remained behind to help get Flik's men organized. Off-loading the horses from the transport proved to be a slow and tedious process. The crowd of civilians remained, but their energy slowly dissipated as the object of their desire had moved out of sight. Eventually the Highland soldiers pushed them back and broke them up.

Led by guides, Viktor and Flik marched the men to a row of barracks along the eastern wall of the town. By the time they arrived at the mayor's mansion, the sun was already down. However, Culgan had delayed the start of dinner so that the two men could partake. He placed Riou at the head of the table, with himself to one side and Lady Teresa to the other. Shin, along as Lady Teresa's bodyguard, took the seat to her left. Flik found that his seat was next to Nanami and two down from Culgan. Chaco seemed not to be participating, which was very like the young Winger. Flik still wondered what Chaco's purpose was, but the tantalizing smell of roasting pheasant drove such thoughts from his mind.

Before the meal was served, Culgan stood up to address his guests. "I am not a particularly religious man, but I do feel that such an auspicious occasion as this calls for a grace before we eat." He waited until all of the conversation had died down and continued:

"Oh Rune of Water, we thank you for your grace,  
Rain for our fields, waves for our ships.  
Spare us the flood, storm, and drought,  
Let peaceful moderation be our only thought."

"That was quite moving," Lady Teresa said, as the first platters of food were brought in. "Tell me, did you think about joining the priesthood before you decided on your military career?"

Culgan, to Flik's surprise, blushed and replied, "I assure you, I never had any interest in the cloth before I went for the mail. Rather, my father built a shrine for the family and invited a priest to reside there. He'd heard that it was all the rage in the capital. Unfortunately, he never figured out that most of the nobility did that only for show, not because of any great faith. All of us, my brothers and sisters, suffered for his fervor." He laughed and took a sip of his wine.

"Is that so?" Teresa matched him by taking a sip from her glass. "Yet the True Runes are very much present in our world. Wouldn't it be wiser to take heed of them than to ignore them?"

Culgan smiled affably. "A rune is simply an instrument through which man exercises his will on the world. A tool, if you will. The True Runes are a stronger, more complex version of that, nothing more. It is true that only a man of uncompromising will may wield that power, but then all runes require a strong will to command." He pulled down the white glove on his right hand just enough to reveal that he bore a flowing rune, a powerful rune of water. Putting the glove back into place, he turned to face Flik and added, "Wouldn't you agree?"

Flik was chewing on a piece of pheasant, and was caught off guard by the question. He grabbed at his wineglass and poured it down to clear his mouth. "I-I would suppose so," he said when he could finally speak.

"In times like these, it is strong will that governs the future," Culgan continued. "One need only look south to Toran for confirmation. The Emperor Barbarossa, though he had the Sovereign Rune at his command, lacked the resolve to use it properly. He was a tool of his ministers, specifically his court magician. It is no wonder that his empire was overthrown by a peasant rabble."

Flik leaped to his feet, the motion causing his chair to tip over backwards onto the red carpeting. In a haze of rage, he began to reach for his sword, only stopping when he realized he was still in the dining hall. Everyone was looking at him. Nanami and Teresa looked particularly aghast. Shin stood up, scanning the room for the threat that would make Flik react in such a way. Culgan artfully hid his expression by wiping at his mouth with his napkin before asking, "Is something that matter, sir Flik?"

Flik took a breath to calm himself. "I…uh…I need to see to my men." He turned his back on Culgan and started walking briskly for the exit.

Viktor rose from his seat and too-casually added, "I'll join you. I could use a little of the night air."

"Is something wrong?" Teresa asked, her voice full of concern. "I'm sure the men are well taken care of, so you don't have to leave the dinner just for that."

"It's all right," Culgan replied. "Viktor and Flik are soldiers, and like good officers, seeing to the comfort of their men takes precedence over everything else." He chuckled dryly. "I should know, for I am a soldier too."

Flik didn't say anything. He continued storming towards the nearest hallway. Viktor stopped long enough to answer, "Thanks for understanding."

Once out of the room, Flik's anger started to mount. He blundered down the corridors, finding an exit by sheer luck. He stepped out into the darkness, paused a moment to adjust to the air, and slammed the door behind him as hard as he could. Before the door smashed back into place, Viktor caught it and joined Flik outside, closing the door gently.

"He's really got you upset," Viktor commented.

Flik opened his mouth to begin a tirade of epic proportions, but was preempted by a deep, ominous rumble from Viktor's back. "Of all the ungrateful, boorish, insufferable, clodhopping, odious, execrable…jerks! How dare he compare me to a tool! As if I were a hammer, or a lever, or…something." Stunned by the vehemence of the Star Dragon Sword, Flik felt his own anger melt away.

"Okay, so he's got the two of you upset," Viktor amended. He glanced around at their surroundings, an orchard attached to the mayor's mansion. "However, I suggest that we continue this conversation somewhere else. We're all supposed to be good friends here."

The Star Dragon Sword wasn't listening. "A tool! Pah! I was divining the secrets of the cosmos while his ancestors were smashing rocks against their foreheads trying to figure out how to create fire!"

"Let's go before someone hears him," Viktor suggested. He began picking his way through the darkness, walking down one of the rows of trees. Flik followed after.

"…had already counted the stars in the heavens before your forebears had even crawled up out of the ocean!"

"Yeah, that's great," Viktor said. "You're awfully talkative tonight; why didn't you speak up in front of Culgan?" He reached up and plucked a pair of pears from one of the trees. He passed one to Flik.

"Thank you." Flik bit down into the fruit eagerly, savoring the juices. He'd had very little of the meal before his exit.

"Am I some sort of carnival amusement, that I must speak in front of idiots?"

"Actually, I think of you as a sword, when I think of you at all. Most of the time, I try not to."

The Star Dragon Sword clattered around in Viktor's scabbard. "You would do well to remember that I've been watching this world for ages. I even waited for years behind the temple of Qlon just for you to find me, so the least you could do is give me a little consideration. For instance, you could try bathing more than once a month."

Viktor twitched as if he'd been struck. "You say something, you lump of scrap metal?"

The sword distinctly sighed. "I'll make it simple. You. Stink. Try using some soap next time you get near water. Your back is a bacterial breeding ground."

"A what?" Viktor asked. Then he snatched the scabbard off his back and gripped it with both hands out in front of him. "You say that to my face, you jumped-up crowbar!"

"I think I will. I've been in middens that smelled better than you do."

"This is exactly why I left you in the Cave of Wind in the first place! It'd take a saint to put up with your crap."

"Ahem." Flik coughed and pointed ahead. There, by a gate on the outer wall of the mansion, was one of the night watchmen, his astonished face clearly visible in the light of a lantern. Both Viktor and the sword stopped immediately. Then the Star Dragon Sword, under its own power, slipped free of its sheath and silently floated towards the guard.

"Boo."

Shrieking, the guard dropped his light and ran off into the darkness. Flik heard him crashing through the trees, his screams growing distant. The Star Dragon sword floated back towards Viktor and returned to the sheath. "That was cathartic. Take me from this place at once, before my ire returns."

Viktor walked towards the gate. "Finally, we're in total agreement."

Once they were out in the street, they walked on in silence, heading towards the barracks. There was still something bothering Flik, though, and he spoke up. "May I ask you a question, Star Dragon Sword?"

Viktor sighed. "I just got him to shut up. Why do you want to go and get him started again?"

The Star Dragon Sword seemed to be in a pleasant mood. At least it wasn't rattling around in Viktor's scabbard. "Unlike some fools I know, here is a man who shows that he can think before speaking. Of course I will answer your question; ask away."

Flik rubbed his lower lip, then said, "You're the only True Rune I've ever heard who speaks directly to us. Why is that?"

Viktor cringed. "Now you've gone and done it! Didn't you see how he blew up when I mentioned talking?"

Surprisingly, the Star Dragon Sword didn't "blow up." It went completely silent as the two men walked along. Flik worried that he'd terribly offended the Rune, that it might not speak ever again, but suddenly the sword did venture an answer. "I can speak only generally, for I do not know the full minds of my brothers. You must understand our point of view. Each one of us has almighty power, but narrow dominion. As such, it can be…difficult…for one of us to understand things outside our respective spheres of influence."

"I don't get that at all," Viktor said, scratching the top of his head.

"Then, humans are part of your 'sphere of influence'?" Flik asked.

The Star Dragon Sword laughed, a noise that stopped both Viktor and Flik in their tracks. "Humanity, my responsibility? I wouldn't wish that on any being! No, I only understand you better because of what I am. I am the Rune of Night. That isn't merely the physical period when one side of this planet is rotated away from your star. My dominion includes the metaphorical night as well. Thoughts and desires hidden away in the recesses of the soul, weaknesses, secrets - all fall under my purview. As such, I understand humans well."

"What, because we're all weak?" Viktor quipped.

"Not merely because you are weak, but because you are all eternally struggling to hide that weakness," the sword responded. "Humans would rather lie, cheat, and steal rather than admit this fact. Nations arm for war and spill blood out of fear that they will be made weak, or shown to be weak, if they do nothing."

"So, what if we want to appear strong?" Flik asked. "If I'm faced with an enemy, I'd rather appear strong than weak."

"Of course you'd rather hurt someone else than be hurt yourself," the sword retorted, catching Flik short. "Humans are like that. You think you can control fate, to make everything come up perfectly. Take this scheme of yours. You think to help the boy, but your lies will end up hurting him greatly, him and his sister. And that hurt will expand, encompassing more people than you'd ever imagine."

"It's not our fault," Viktor shouted. He grabbed the sword off his back again, yelling into its face. "The Highlanders are making us do this! They lied first!"

"One lie begets another, but the cycle never returns to truth. This war is not under my jurisdiction, so I will not intervene more fully, but know this – you must trust the heart of that boy if you are to truly win. Go and tell him the truth, or understand that the consequences are your own fault!"

The Star Dragon Sword suddenly went quiet in Viktor's hands. Both Viktor and Flik stared at it, waiting for it to say something more. Viktor gave the sword a gentle shake. "Hey, you lump of metal, speak up again! Hey, you awake, Star Dragon Sword?" He shook it again, more vigorously. "Come on, Zodiac Sword, tell us what to do!"

"He did tell us," Flik said somberly. "But, can we do it?"

The two men looked back to the sword, silently imploring it to say something more, to fortify their courage. The little face on the metal cross guard remained mute, eyes locked blankly on the night sky. The south wind began to roll mist off of Lake Dunan. Flik shivered slightly, but it wasn't because of the moisture.


	69. Chapter 69 No Going Back

**Chapter 69 – No Going Back**

After the incident with the Star Dragon Sword, Viktor and Flik hurried on to the barracks. They ran in silence broken only by their breathing and echoing footfalls. Flik's mind was reeling. The sword had said that to carry out Shu's plan would ultimately end up hurting Riou, but Flik couldn't see any alternative. If they didn't follow Shu's orders, Riou would end up imprisoned or dead, the war lost. Flik couldn't even conceive of altering the plan, there were too many things that might go awry.

As they neared the compound, Flik had made his decision. His soldier's instincts told him that it was better to follow through on a plan that was already in place, regardless of the consequences, rather than attempt to come up with a new one on the fly. The two men slowed to a walk, letting the Highland guards pass them through into the barracks. Once inside, Viktor turned to Flik and muttered, "What now? What do we do with what we heard?"

"I'm going to brief Rossgard," Flik answered confidently. Viktor frowned, and he continued, "What will happen to Riou if Shu's strategy fails because we hesitate? If all of our options are bad, I'd still go with what was planned."

Viktor nodded, but his voice sounded unsure. "Yeah. If the sword had given us some alternative plan, maybe things would be different, but we have to go with what we've been given."

Flik had chosen Rossgard to accompany him because of the older man's calm nature. That nature was on display again as the senior sergeant listened to the plan. When Flik was finished, Rossgard only nodded and said, "Well, that explains why you've been so troubled, sir."

"What about the plan?" Flik asked. "Is there anything you think we're overlooking?"

Rossgard shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? I see no reason to doubt the strategist. All the pieces should be in place when we need them to be. If something goes wrong, we'll just have to survive." The balding sergeant looked up at Flik. "I know that you two can. You've been through more than most of us mercenaries ever will see. If the plan goes bad, you two will still be able to get Lord Riou out, I have no doubt."

Viktor smiled. "You've got that much confidence in us?"

"It's a big country, sir. Full of places where a couple of rogues could live off the land while dodging Highland patrols. As long as you got Lord Riou to the lake, there'd be someone to pick you up and get you back to friendly lines."

"Whatever else happens, we make sure that Riou gets safely out," Flik said, glancing from man to man.

"Whatever happens," Viktor replied.

Rossgard bowed his head. "That is our duty."

In the morning, they gathered by the north gate of Coronet. The day was clear and warm, turning hot as the sun rose higher in the sky. Riou set a leisurely pace out of Coronet, intending to reach the outskirts of Muse City by evening. As soon as they were underway, Flik took a half-company's worth of men and trotted out in front of the main group.

It was a risk, but one that Viktor and Flik had discussed. They needed to establish that the men of Riou's honor guard would also run long patrols, so that no one would comment if a large group of them disappeared for hours on end. Culgan didn't say anything when Flik rode off. Of course the Highlanders might have forces of their own positioned to deal with interlopers.

Flik tried not to think about that as his men crested a hill and the remainder of the diplomatic party was obscured from view. Instead, he focused on the ride. At first there was little to see, but hours passed, and they began to enter the built-up areas closer to Muse. He remembered retreating down the road months ago, fighting through the fleeing civilians as much as fighting the Highlanders. There were buildings that showed evidence of that battle. Some had extensive fire damage. Some were nothing more than burnt husks.

"It's quiet," one of the mercenaries muttered.

It was quiet. Flik scanned the houses and stores more closely, but saw nothing more than a few crows and a rat that poked up from behind a barrel and just as quickly ducked back out of sight. A bead of sweat rolled down from between his eyes.

"Damn," another soldier commented.

"Where the hell are the people?"

"Enough chatter!" Flik snapped. "It doesn't matter where the people are. We've got a job to do: keeping Riou safe. Focus on that. Save the worrying for the people who are paid to do so!" He spurred his horse up to a canter, hoping that concentrating on riding would distract his men. It didn't.

"Captain's jumpier than normal."

"You weren't there when we fought our way south. Damn place is full of ghosts now. Who knows what the Highlanders did to them, but they're all dead."

"Quiet!" Flik shouted, without looking back to see who the offenders were. They shut up.

They moved on to the next cluster of buildings, which was similarly empty. They passed through several more deserted villages as they rode north and then west. Only once did Flik find evidence of anyone living, and that only a hunched over woman who fled before he could get close. No one else was in the villages. No one else moved in the fields around them.

There also wasn't any evidence of Highlanders waiting in ambush, but Flik was savvy enough to know that his men could only cover a little ground. Any Highlanders might just as easily have slipped away. Then, with the sun angling into the west, he caught sight of the cliffs of Muse. This was where everything would come to a head.

He called a halt about a mile short of the city gates. There was no traffic in any direction, no sign of anything human stirring. The city walls weren't even manned. Flik set his camp on the intersection, not wanting to approach any nearer. He sent a pair of riders back to inform Riou.

As he watched his men work, Flik realized that the sun was already close to the western horizon. The hours of summer were growing short. Soon fall would arrive, and with it, changing weather. If the war continued, campaigning would grow increasingly difficult.

Riou came up before the sun had set. Culgan, smiling as always, nodded to Flik as they approached. "No doubt you've found nothing untoward during your little excursion. Allow me to reiterate; Highland wants peace and so we shall have peace, tomorrow."

"You're quite right," Flik retorted. "I couldn't find any Highland soldiers out there. In fact, I didn't see much of anyone at all. Just a bunch of empty fields."

Culgan's smile didn't reach his eyes as he brought his hand up to wipe the sweat off his forehead. "You know how it is. Peasants everywhere are afraid of soldiers. They'll run at the first sight of them."

Flik couldn't help but throw the barb. "In South Window, no one runs from the New State Army. Perhaps you did…something to make them disappear." He turned to look Culgan straight in the eyes.

Culgan couldn't meet the gaze, his smile evaporating under the scrutiny. "There is always unavoidable collateral damage during military operations. No doubt some civilians were killed." His eyes came back, challenging Flik's. "No doubt you've killed civilians too."

Flik was confronted with the image of a boy and his sister on the road, Highland cavalry behind them, and fire rushing down before them. He couldn't argue Culgan's point. Riou suddenly rode forward, turning his horse so that he stood next to Flik. "I was present in Matilda while Highland was conducting operations along the border. I was with Miklotov, near this very spot, at the rising of the Beast Rune. I know what happened." He glared at Culgan. "The fact that civilians fall during battle is terrible, but sometimes forgivable. Rounding people up and slaughtering them in cold blood is not."

Culgan frowned, but found an answer. "But what about civilians who think too much of themselves and choose to fight when they shouldn't? A partisan without a uniform is not subject to the rules of war."

He started to smile again, but the emotion died on his face when Riou narrowed his eyes. Riou's answer came out tight and angry, angry enough to shock Flik. "I saw women and children being rounded up. I saw men who were forced to fight only because you rode them down. That is the truth. Tell me differently if you dare, Culgan. Highland will answer for those deaths." Riou's body was practically shaking at this point and Flik put out a steadying hand on Riou's shoulder.

Now Culgan appeared genuinely worried. "Are you going to jeopardize the peace over a few-"

He paused, unable to continue the thought while looking at Riou's terrible demeanor. Still, Culgan had one more argument to muster. "Lord Riou, the one who had to answer is already dead, slain by your hand. We should put this unpleasantness behind us and work together for peace, not bicker because of the sins of one madman." His horse began to back away from Riou and only stopped with an effort on Culgan's part.

"It took more than one man to round them up. It took more than one man to kill them all." Riou shook his head and the anger that he was holding slipped away. He slumped down in his saddle. "But you are not the one that I have to speak to. Jowy will understand; he always does. Thank you for escorting us this far, Lord Culgan. I will speak with Jowy tomorrow."

Culgan's face brightened now that the pressure was off. "Yes, Lord Riou. That you will, and tomorrow we shall all have peace. It has been my pleasure to travel with you. I bid you a good night." With that, he kicked his horse up into a trot and rode north into the evening gloom, heading for the city gates.

"So, who wants to eat?" Viktor asked, rubbing his stomach. "I don't know about you, but I'm starved."

Food was served up and the meal eaten in silence. Riou's expression was set, his eyes drifting back and forth between the cooking fires and the distant city. Nanami gazed at her brother, concern evident on her face. Viktor appeared calm, but Flik, through long practice, could see the tension in his face. The others – Teresa, Shin, even Chaco – were silent and unreadable. Flik felt an urgent need to shout out, to tell Riou everything. Instead, he spooned more soup into his mouth and swallowed both it and his anxiety down. Only Pilika, whom he noted last, seemed truly at ease. She finished her food and snuggled up next to Nanami.

"I am going to bed," Riou announced when he finished his meal. "We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow, so I suggest that you all get a lot of rest." He stood up and started to walk away. Nanami quickly hopped to her feet and started after, calling for Pilika to follow.

Flik rose and stretched, yawning as he did so. He and Viktor shared a look. They both might be tired, but there was still so much that they had to do. The two of them excused themselves and walked away. They'd just gotten out of the light when Flik heard footsteps coming up behind them. Both men turned warily to see Shin approaching.

He glowered at them, then, without preamble, said, "Whatever it is that you two must do, don't botch it. If Lady Teresa were killed or captured because of your mistakes, know that I would hunt you down personally."

"That's a cheery thought. Why don't you take care of your own responsibilities?" Viktor snapped.

Shin's frown deepened, so Flik added, "Just stay near Lady Teresa and Riou tomorrow." Shin glared at them for a moment longer, finally turning away and returning to the light.

When they returned to Flik's men, Rossgard was waiting. "Prepare the horses and men for silent riding," Flik ordered. The senior sergeant saluted and jogged off. Flik glanced back towards the fire, only to find that it had been dowsed. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could see that his men were preparing. He still hadn't told them what this was about, but they were following orders without any obvious complaining. The Blue Moon, a tiny sliver, was following the sun over the western horizon. The Scarlet Moon was not up yet, though it would be half-full when it did so. The first part of the mission would have to be done with only the stars for light.

Before half an hour had passed, Rossgard returned and whispered, "We are ready, sir."

Flik nodded, then looked to Viktor. Now was the moment he dreaded. He opened his mouth, said hesitantly, "Do you want to go get her or should I?"

Viktor shrugged, but that nonchalance wasn't on his voice. "Damn. What if she doesn't want to come with us?"

Flik shook his head. "I don't know."

"Sir?" Rossgard interrupted. He was pointing out into the distance, back towards where they'd eaten. "Someone is approaching us."

"Damn," Viktor whispered, his voice almost reverent.

Pilika silently emerged out of the darkness, carrying an overstuffed teddy bear in her arms. She stopped and stared up expectantly at the three men. Flik addressed her, trying to keep his voice calm. "Did…did Shu speak to you, too?"

She said nothing, but nodded distinctly.

"You know the plan, then?"

Another nod.

Flik knew the answer to the next question – her presence was answer enough – but he asked it anyway. "And, you're all right with it? You don't mind that we're taking you away from Riou and Nanami?"

In the months since Riou and Jowy had brought her back from Toto, Pilika had never once spoken to Flik. Indeed, since the attack on the fort, she'd been completely silent, rarely leaving the side of Nanami or Leona. Now, even though she didn't speak, Flik could feel her conviction as she stood before him and nodded one last time. There was no going back.

"We ride at once," Flik ordered. "Pilika, you will go with Viktor. He will keep you safe until we arrive."

Viktor bent down to pick up Pilika. "Up you go, now. I've got you." With Pilika secure, the three men jogged over to where Flik's men were assembled. They mounted and, without any explanation, Flik led them off, heading down the road to the east. He felt a moment's regret for Riou, who would wake up tomorrow morning to find that his escort had vanished. Hopefully Chaco or Shin would have an excuse prepared. The plan had to hold up now, that was all that mattered.

They rode on at a walk for about an hour before Flik called out a halt. At Rossgard's urging, the men arranged themselves in a circle around Flik to hear what he had to say. Flik put on his bravest voice and slowly explained the situation. He couldn't really see his men's faces. It was probably better that way. He wasn't able to see if they were afraid or if they doubted. After explaining the plan, he had one further admonition. "Once we begin, I won't stop except for a few breaks. No one is to slow down for any other reason. If your horse pulls up lame or you get injured and can't keep up, pull out of the column and try to hide. Make your way back to South Window as you are able. That is all. Now, back in formation, men! We begin!"

He set off at a trot, continuing east. He'd selected the strongest horses for this mission, but it would still be a test for both man and beast. He shook his head and tried not to think about how tired he'd be at the end of this. The night was cool and they covered ground swiftly on the paved road. Three hours saw them to Bernand's Crossing, where Flik had the men rest for fifteen minutes before moving on, this time heading north. He remembered this ground, remembered retreating down the road when Muse fell.

The road sloped gently as they went north, rising to meet the level of the cliffs to the west. Even this slight incline began to tell after a while, and the formation became ragged, a few of the men lagging behind. No one had gone down, though, which Flik thought was a minor miracle. One misplaced foot in this darkness would mean a horse with a broken leg.

Time flowed by. The Scarlet Moon came up in the east and had ascended over Flik's right shoulder by the time he turned off the road, heading back to the west. He could distantly make out the walls of the Dawn Fort, easternmost of the Ring Forts guarding the city and cliffs of Muse. Traversing the fields was slower than riding the road. For all his care, one horse did go down, whinnying sharply as it hit the ground. Flik didn't turn to see which mount it was. Instead, he ordered, "Ride on!" This command was quickly passed down the line. He whispered a quiet prayer for the man they'd left behind.

The eastern sky was beginning to grow pale when they reached the Dawn Fort. Once again, Flik let his men rest momentarily while he sent a pair of scouts forward to see what they could. One reported back, saying the fort was empty, while the other scaled the walls to open the doors from the inside. So far all of Shu's predictions had come true. The Highland Army was too depleted to man the Ring Forts.

Flik chivied his men through the fort. The sun was rising red in the east, coming up through a layer of distant clouds. They no longer had the cloak of night to conceal their movements, and the negotiations were set to begin one hour before noon. There was much ground to cover in the four and a half hours remaining to them.

They followed the road west out of the dawn fort. The day was rapidly warming up, making the going rougher. A headache was building behind Flik's eyes. He tried to shake it off, but the pain persisted. His stomach gurgled, portending another pain that he wouldn't be able to take care of for a while.

The sun rose higher, and Flik's shadow to the west shrank back to meet him. Finally, shimmering in the distance, he caught sight of the conference hall. Warily, he scanned the horizon, starting from dead ahead and working his way around to the north. Every direction was clear, there were no Highland soldiers in evidence. At the hall itself, he thought he could see a few officials standing around. Clearly, the negotiations hadn't yet started.

Flik ordered his men back behind the shelter of some trees to rest, then called Rossgard and Viktor up. "As soon as Riou and the rest of them arrive, we move, quickly and decisively. Rossgard, take half the men and secure the causeway down to the street level of Muse. I will take the rest of the men and secure the perimeter of the conference hall. Viktor, you get Riou out of there. Got it?"

"Sir!" Rossgard answered.

"Looks like they're here," Viktor replied. "Let's do it."

Flik gazed back to the west. A group of people had just emerged from the causeway. It was too far to make anyone out clearly, but the numbers appeared to be correct. He waited a moment longer, until everyone had disappeared into the hall.

"Up!" Flik shouted. "Forward, at a canter. For Riou!" His men responded with a ragged cheer. The conference hall came into better focus, growing larger in Flik's sight. Now that they were nearer, he could see a couple of sentries patrolling the roof. One was pointing at Flik's men, while another was shielding his eyes against the sun, apparently trying to make them out. Flik waved to them, hoping to confuse them, hoping to buy a few more desperate seconds.

Closer now, the stone building started to loom up. There was a shout from above, and Flik saw one of the guards ready a crossbow, while the other turned to spread the warning. Flik brought up his hand. The range was long, but he had to attempt it. The crossbow clacked as Flik released a blast of lightning. The crossbow bolt clattered harmlessly off the road. Flik's electrical bolt smashed into the other man, the shouter, who tumbled off the roof. As if that were a signal, more archers appeared on the rooftop. A few Highlanders also appeared from the main entrance of the building.

Flik's men raced forward, riding right past the main entrance, heading for the visitor's side entrance. "Go, Viktor!" he shouted. Viktor didn't hesitate, pulling his horse up, he slid off, Pilika still in his hands. She'd fallen asleep during the night ride, but now stirred to wakefulness as Viktor slipped through the door. A crossbow bolt whined dangerously close to Flik, and he looked back to the battle.

Rossgard's men were already beyond to the west, streaming down the causeway. Meanwhile, Flik's men had pulled out their bows and were trading shots with the archers on the roof. Flik sent another blast of lightning up. It crashed against the side of the building, sending up a spray of rock shards and plaster. Another Highlander fell from the roof, an arrow stuck in his stomach. One of Flik's men went down with a bolt stuck in his leg. One more man that Flik couldn't afford to help.

"Sir, we've got enemy cavalry coming!" one of his men shouted. Flik looked over, then flinched aside when an iron bolt streaked right by his shoulder. Another round of lightning kept the archers down for a moment, long enough for Flik to confirm that there was indeed Highland cavalry approaching from the northeast. Lots of Highland cavalry. Flik guessed that he had about five more minutes. What was taking Viktor so long? Another mercenary was screaming, a crossbow bolt stuck in his shoulder.

Shin emerged from the visitor's entrance, regarded the growing battle and pulled back, shielding Lady Teresa as she came out.

"We've got mounts for you!" Flik shouted. "Come on, move! Where's Viktor?"

Shin and Teresa sprinted, ducking as another volley of crossbow bolts was fired. More men went down. One bolt slid between the legs of Flik's horse. "Behind us," the taciturn bodyguard answered.

His words were true. Viktor propelled Riou out the door with a push, carrying Nanami under one arm. Riou looked stunned; he didn't appear to see the battle around him. Nanami was screaming, flailing at Viktor. "Go back and get Pilika!" she shouted. "Go back and get her!"

"That's one order I won't follow!" Viktor yelled back. "Get to the horses! Move, Riou!" He shoved Riou again, grabbing the scruff of his shirt and pushing him onward.

"Rally to me!" Flik commanded. "Rally to me!" His men started falling back. He could hear the Highland cavalry approaching. The ground was beginning to rumble from the sound of their hooves.

"You will get up there, Nanami, or so help me I will tie you to the horse like a sack of potatoes!" Viktor shouted. "Stop hitting me, damn girl!"

Nanami was stunned into silence. Flik risked a look back and saw tears streaming down her face. Sullenly, she climbed into the saddle. "Let's go!" Flik commanded, turning his horse. "Ride with me!"

They'd only been there a few minutes, but it felt like an eternity to Flik. Sweat was running down his face, staining his clothes. His headache was so intense that he felt lightheaded for a few seconds. His men were riding around him, Viktor leading Riou and Nanami at the head of the column. More crossbow bolts zipped by, one hitting an unfortunate man directly in the back. He twitched and fell out of his saddle, dashing his head hard against the pavement. Flik, at the rear of the column, rode past without looking.

The chase was on. Flik's men gained the causeway, fleeing down it almost at a mad gallop. Flik shouted to slow their pace, to think of the horses, but no one was listening. Highlanders appeared above them at the edge of the cliff, and fired more arrows down. The retreat was rapidly degenerating into a rout, and there was little Flik could do to control it. He plunged onward, hoping that Rossgard had secured the bottom.

He had. The sight of his men standing ready restored a sense of order to the flight. Flik was last off the causeway, entering the city under a large arch that stood at the foot of the cliffs. Rossgard's men were rolling barrels against the sides of the arch as Flik came out into the sunlight.

"What're you doing?" Flik asked.

"Thought I'd try and find a way to slow down the pursuit," Rossgard offered. "One of my men found these barrels full of oil, so I thought I'd try and make things hot for our friends." He gestured back up the causeway, where the Highlanders were flowing down in pursuit. "If you would do the honors, captain."

Flik nodded. The barrels exploded into flame when hit by his lightning, the fire crackling all along the base of the arch. Flik sent another bolt out, this time aiming for the stone of the base. The impact scorched the stone, sending a chunk flying out. It was a pitiful gesture, hardly enough to bring the thing tumbling down. Flik swayed in his saddle, vision blurring.

"That's enough, sir. We can only do so much. It's time to go, captain." Underscoring the point, an arrow sliced over the arch, skittering along the street. Flik turned his horse and, with Rossgard's soldiers around him, started after Viktor.

He had detailed the few men from Muse that he did have to guide them through the city streets. These pathfinders were invaluable now, leading them down twisting alleys and side streets, but always in the right direction, heading southeast. Everywhere they went, there was nothing but empty buildings. At one point, they emerged onto the broad avenue that led from the executive buildings down to the south gate. From end to end, Flik could see that it was completely empty. Only the trees lining the center of the road stood watch now. He shook his head and hurried on.

The mercenaries began to tire from the exertion. It was all Flik could do simply to focus on his riding now. He'd already seen a few men fall completely out of their saddles. Reaching the head of the column, he shook his head, trying to get some sense of their situation. They were riding down another alley, the multi-story dwellings looming overhead to either side. Looking up, he could see a thin strip of the sky, clouding over in the late afternoon heat. The sun was behind him, the east wall of the city before him.

His men, exhausted all, came out of the alley onto a street leading directly to the gate. A line of Highlanders was waiting for them in front of that exit, both archers and infantry with spears. They weren't many, but they were rested. Viktor came up alongside Flik and shook his head, sending sprays of sweat in all directions. "This does not look good, Flik."

"What now?" Nanami snapped. "What now?" Riou was still staring straight ahead, not reacting to anything.

"Shu said the gate would be open," Flik answered wearily. "He did."

"He's obviously wrong," Viktor replied. "Are we strong enough to push them aside?"

It was hard for Flik to concentrate. "If we had the Fire Spears."

"We don't," Viktor said. There'd been no way to take them. It would've alerted the Highlanders that something was up.

"I don't know," Flik responded. "We have to try, right?"

Suddenly a commotion broke out among the waiting Highlanders. To Flik's utter amazement, the gates slowly started to part, opening wide to the countryside beyond. He could distinctly hear shouting from the gatehouse.

"Give that back, you damn Winger!"

Chaco climbed out of the gatehouse onto the parapet of the wall and took to the air, dodging the arrows that were sent up from below. He was holding a black, iron lever in his hand. "Sorry, but Shu told me the gate will close if I give this back to you! Now, let's help Riou get out of here!"

In an instant, the air was filled with Winghorde fighters. They climbed out of the upper stories of houses, flying straight at the Highlanders. Flik gathered his men up and shouted, "Keep riding! Don't stop to fight, let the Wingers do that for us! Our job is to keep Riou safe! Go!"

They lunged forward, weary men and weary horses. A Highlander stumbled out of the press, his face a mass of shredded skin. Flik whacked the man aside with his shield and plunged into the confusion. He slashed furiously but always continued forward. A few seconds more and he was on the other side, watching as his men joined him.

"Ride!" Flik yelled. "Ride for the coast! Stay together and follow the plan!" Lady Teresa and Shin went by, followed by Viktor with Riou and Nanami. Nanami's glare was cold and angry. Flik grimaced and looked away. She might be angry, but at least she and her brother were safe. When all of Flik's men were by, the Winghordes took to the air again. Flik saw that Chaco was among them, still holding the lever.

They left the city with the cliffs looming up above them. Flik glanced up, scanning the edge for signs of activity. There was nothing. He urged his mount on, back to the head of the column, leading the escapees down a lane that curved back to the south to meet the King's Road. With the city behind him, he slowed the pace to a trot. There was no time for a formal count, but he estimated that more than a quarter of his men were not with him, left behind by heat, exhaustion, or wounds.

Riou had to be worth the price. Victory had to be worth the price. Flik glanced over at Riou, who still seemed to be numb. There was no time to stop and see to him, however. Flik wanted to cover more distance before nightfall. He looked back to Muse. A thin line of smoke was rising up over the city, barely visible against the clouds building into overcast. A blast of cool air shook his cape, bringing with it refreshing drizzle.

The rain came in fitful bursts as the daylight waned. Flik was grateful, for it also slowed pursuit. Once again at Bernand's Crossing, he finally let his exhausted men and horses get some food and rest. Dismounting, he walked carefully over to where the others were. Nanami was yelling at Viktor again.

"Why did you leave Pilika? Why?"

"It was the only way to save you," Viktor answered softly. "The only way."

Flik put a gentle hand on her shoulder. She responded by snapping her head around, glaring darkly at him. "It was all part of Shu's plan," Flik explained. "He knew that Jowy was going to pull something, and so we needed a counter plan."

Nanami slapped his hand away. "I hate you," she whispered. "I hate you. I hate the war. I hate that damn strategist." She stopped, gathered her breath, and shrieked, "All of you!" Turning, she stalked off into the darkness. Lady Teresa glanced at Shin, who nodded and followed after her, keeping a respectful distance.

Flik collapsed to his knees, his strength gone. "What happened in there?" he gasped. "What happened to Riou?"

Riou twitched at the mention of his name and, in an agonized voice, said, "Jowy…"

"It was a trap," Lady Teresa answered, looking from Viktor to Flik. Like all of them, she looked tired. Flik could see that her cheeks and the tip of her nose were sunburnt. Her hair was a tangled, windblown mess. "One that you two appear to have had foreknowledge of." Her voice had a cold edge to it. "Jowy demanded our unconditional surrender. When Riou wouldn't give it, archers were brought out. Riou still wouldn't give in and Nanami tried to reason with both of them. That's when Viktor arrived with Pilika. In the confusion, we were able to escape. Perhaps Jowy didn't want to commit murder in front of Pilika, but that's only my guess."

Flik slowly inclined his head, his eyes closed, then opened them and looked at Riou's back. "I'm sorry that we had to keep it from you. Shu told us that this was the only way that plan would work. You had to go in not knowing."

"A very hard plan," Lady Teresa declared. "Very hard for both of them."

"I know that Shu thought about that," Flik said. "He agonized over it."

"Yet he is not the one in agony now," Lady Teresa retorted. She looked off in the direction Nanami had stormed away in.

Riou was still facing away from Flik, still staring off into nothing. It seemed that the Night Rune's words had come true. "I am sorry, Riou," Flik whispered.

There was no response. Another gust of wind brought more rain and Flik wearily stood up, looking around at his spent men, at his trembling horses. Surely there had been no better way?


	70. Chapter 70 Free Time

**Chapter 70 – Free Time**

Water squelched under the hooves of Flik's horse as he rode through a sea of giant ferns, some which brushed his feet in the stirrups. Ahead of him, not too far away, he could hear the waters of Lake Dunan. That was where the rescue was. Behind him was a line of weary riders.

During the night they'd ridden east from Bernand's Crossing, following the King's Road towards Toto for many miles before Flik finally abandoned that route and plunged south. From the dawn's light, he'd had Wingers guiding him towards a galley that was waiting for them.

That wasn't the only thing the Winghordes were doing. Chaco swooped in low and shouted, "Pick up the pace! There's a group of Highlanders about a mile back, and I don't know if we can decoy them off of you."

Flik wanted to shout that there was no way he could, but was too tired to muster the energy. Rather, he asked, "How far to the boat?"

"The way you're going, it might be all day!" Chaco retorted. He pulled a lazy loop and pointed ahead. "Half a mile. You'll see the beach once you get over that little hill."

Flik looked over his shoulder to his lagging men. They'd been active for more than a day now, and the toll was high. He had maybe half of them left. Maybe. Viktor had fallen out of the saddle once during the night, and Flik had almost countermanded his own order to keep going, but the fall only stunned the big man back to wakefulness. He had remounted and caught up within minutes.

"Just a little further," Flik shouted. "Come on, men! We're almost home!" His eyes strayed to Riou and Nanami. Her anger had only abated with exhaustion, and now Riou was helping her stay astride. For his part, Riou didn't look dazed anymore, but still didn't say anything. He rode with a set expression.

The sun was rising, climbing into the sky, and the rain had long since departed. Flik's horse found the hill that Chaco had described, a gentle sloping of the land. The ferns abruptly began to thin out and the ground grew sandy. At the top of the hill, he could see the blue of the lake. Waiting just outside the surf line was one of the galleys from Dunan Castle. Flik turned to urge on his men, but the sound caught in his throat. From his vantage point, he could see the Highlanders. There were about a hundred of them, closing from behind rapidly.

"At a gallop, men!" Flik commanded. "Don't spare the horses, just make for the ship!"

Chaco wheeled overhead. "Looks like we've got one more job to do!" From somewhere, he'd been joined by a dozen Wingers. They arced towards the approaching enemies, talons and spears plunging in.

Flik's men struggled around him, men and horses puffing audibly. When all were past, he kicked his horse up to a gallop. In front of him, the others were sending up sprays of sand and grit, the horses feebly trying to sustain the pace. One collapsed, falling to the beach and taking his rider with him. The mercenary cried out in pain as the horse rolled over his leg. Two of his comrades, disobeying orders, jumped down from their mounts and pulled him free. Looking back, Flik could see them trying to carry the wounded man between them.

He couldn't ignore such a gesture and so turned his horse around. The first Highlanders were already on the hilltop and were shouting back, calling for the others to come up. Flik nodded as the two soldiers bore their comrade past him. "Take him to the ship," he ordered. "I'll cover for you."

"Not alone you won't," Viktor added, drawing the Star Dragon Sword.

The Highlanders were coming down the hill now, some thirty of them with swords drawn. One was stringing a bow. This was the one the Flik targeted first, throwing a bolt of lightning, knocking the man off his horse. The other Highlanders hesitated only a moment, then started to spread out. More were coming over the top of the hill.

"This is going to be a tough fight," Flik commented.

"Ah, we've been in tougher," Viktor retorted.

A dome of white light suddenly flared up around them, expanding out towards the Highland cavalry. Men and horses screamed, retreating rather than face that wrath.

"It would be a shame to see you two die so foolishly," Riou said, riding up between them. "Especially after you've gone through so much trouble to save me."

For the first time since the conference hall, Riou was smiling. "Are you okay?" Flik asked.

Riou shook his head. "There are things that we need to talk about." His smile faded. "But I don't hold you two responsible, not when you were trying your best to save us. Now is not the time for this. We must get to the boat."

The three of them wheeled their mounts around and galloped. Flik could hear the Highlanders regrouping behind him. Ahead, the abandoned horses gathered nervously at the edge of the surf, while the two soldiers rolled their wounded comrade over the rail of the ship and then jumped in after. Flik was sorry that the horses had to be left behind, especially after their noble work, but there was no room on the galley. He dismounted, waded out into the water, and accepted the hands of his men, pulling him up onto the boat. Viktor and Riou were pulled in after, and the oars began to back water, guiding the ship out of danger.

A few of the enemy soldiers came down to the shoreline, to gather in the horses that were left behind. At least the horses would be fed and rested. Flik almost laughed at this point, knowing that the Highlanders wouldn't treat him so gently, if he fell into their hands. It was odd to think that both sides in this war would show consideration for animals, but not their fellow men.

That was Flik's last cogent thought. In the next instant, he was wondering about the pain in the back of his head, then wondering why he was looking up at the cloudless sky. His eyes closed of their own accord, body succumbing to sheer exhaustion. He drifted into a dream of endless riding, of fleeing some threat that was drawing ever closer. Nanami's face floated through the dreams, her silent anger making him quiver. Viktor fell from his horse, but didn't get back up, and Flik couldn't reach him, no matter how hard he pushed.

With a gasp, Flik awoke, and found that Viktor was by his side, shaking his shoulder. His friend gave him a goofy grin and said, "That must've been some dream you were having. I didn't want to wake you, but we're almost back."

Flik squeezed his eyes tight, then opened them slowly. For a minute, he thought he was back in the dream. The galley appeared to be drifting along a sea of blood. He shook his head, clearing cobwebs. It was only the light of the setting sun. He stood up, registered Viktor's concerned face, and saw the remainder of his men sprawled out on the deck. Chaco was asleep in the crow's nest, one wing drooping over the side. In the distance was the harbor of Dunan Castle, other ships bobbing on the waves, and the cliffs reflecting the evening red. Higher up were the stone walls of the city and the towers of the castle, including the highest tower that he was wont to climb at all hours of the night.

The galley rocked slightly on a wave, and Flik started to take a step to balance himself. He doubled over in pain, falling back on his butt. All of his muscles hurt, especially his thighs, which were extremely tight.

"Damn," he groaned weakly.

"Yeah, that's about right," Viktor observed. "Basically no one can move right now. Your men will probably have to be carried back into the castle."

"How the hell can you stand it?"

"Me?" Viktor shrugged. "I guess I'm too thick-headed to notice. I wonder if Riou hired a masseuse during his travels? I could sure go for that. Or for a nice, long bath."

Flik crawled towards the railing, trying to find some support. Viktor ducked down and, offering a shoulder, steadied him back onto his feet. The galley was closer now, lining up with the long, stone dock. The others – Riou and Nanami, Lady Teresa and Shin – appeared on deck. The galley rocked again, and Flik nearly lost his footing.

"Steady there, Flik," Viktor said, tightening his grip on Flik's side. "Try to look awake; we've got a welcoming committee to face."

Flik squinted against the glare. At the midpoint of the dock were several people. Shu and Apple were at the forefront, but he also recognized Ridley, Kiba, and Klaus. The galley began to slow, and experienced crewmen tossed lines to the dockhands waiting on shore. The ship slipped smoothly into place, and the gangplank was dropped down.

Viktor and Flik, relying mostly on Viktor's strength, shuffled forward towards the dock. Riou and Nanami were already off, and Shu was walking up to greet them.

"Lord Riou, words can hardly express my relief at seeing you whole and unharmed." He glanced up, catching sight of Viktor and Flik. "General Viktor, General Flik, you have my sincere gratitude. It was only due to your commendable efforts that my plan was executed successfully."

Apple was smiling. Ridley, Kiba, and Klaus began to clap, but another voice brought the celebration to a halt. "So it was your plan!" Nanami shouted, advancing on Shu, pointing a finger at him. "You made us bring Pilika along just so you could…you could…"

Words failed her momentarily. Shu's smile faded as he met her glare. "It was entirely necessary to ensure your safety," he answered softly.

If Shu had meant those words as an apology, he failed. "You used Pilika like a tool!" Nanami shrieked, balling her hand up into a fist. "Just like you use everyone else! I hate you! I won't ever, ever forgive you for this!"

Shu continued to meet her gaze, even as the others behind him looked aghast. Apple took a few steps forward. "Nanami, you've got to understand that-"

Shu stopped Apple with an outstretched hand, then quietly said, "Any blame belongs to me alone, but I'm not going to ask for your forgiveness. I did what had to be done to save you and your brother."

Nanami's fist was shaking and a growl threatened to erupt from her throat, but at the last moment it turned into a sob. Riou reached out to comfort her, but she hid her face in her hands and dashed forward, splitting the dignitaries right down the middle, leaving her brother's hand touching nothing but air. Seconds later, she had disappeared into the castle.

Sighing, Shu fixed his attention back on Riou. "If it helps, you may hate me too, Lord Riou. Just remember that we need you, all of us. Everything must come before that, even friendship, even honor, even life."

Riou shook his head. "You say those words, but can you help me if you don't trust me?" He walked past the strategist, adding, "I need to think about things alone. I understand why you did this, Shu, but that doesn't mean it hurts any less." Without another word, he followed his sister into the castle.

Shu's head dropped. "It would've been easier to bear had he screamed at me, like his sister."

Apple turned to face the strategist, trying to look in and read his expression. "Shu…"

He glanced up again, composure regained. "Viktor, Flik, you are dismissed. I give you tomorrow as free time." He turned around and, with a measured pace, walked away, trailing Apple and the others behind him.

"Well, that was exciting," Viktor commented. "What should we do first, bathe or eat?"

Flik's stomach was complaining, but he couldn't imagine showing up at Hai Yo's in his current state. "Bath," he answered. "A nice, long bath to wash off all this sweat and work my muscles out."

Viktor whacked him on the back. "Good answer! I could go for just sitting in there for hours until I shrivel up into a prune. Let's go, or do I need to carry you there?"

Thighs complaining, Flik managed to stand up straight. "I can walk there. At least, I think I can." He was not going to be carried through the castle by Viktor, not where everyone could see him.

They started off, but before long, Viktor had to slow his steps so that Flik could keep up. Flik struggled up the stairs, using the wall for support, then hobbled down the hallway, feeling very much like an old man. Eventually they made it to the entrance of the baths.

Tetsu, the graying, muscled proprietor of the establishment, gave them a disapproving stare. "Damn, I'll have to flush the entire system after this. Go on, you two rogues, get in there and get toasty! And don't wander into the women's bath by mistake, or I'll have to ban you permanently."

"Okay, okay," Viktor groused. "It's not like we'd do something like that on purpose. You've got two gentlemen here, and you know it."

"I've got two men here, that's for sure, and I've already had complaints." He nodded to them. "Just giving you fair warning, that's all."

They ambled through the door clearly marked "men" and into the changing room. In moments they had stripped down and walked out to the baths. These were actually several rooms, each with a bath at a different temperature. Supposedly, there was a correct order, but Viktor and Flik proceeded directly to the hot bath, in a room made entirely of cypress. As he settled into the steaming water, he realized they weren't the only people in the bath.

"Hey Riou," Viktor said. "We didn't realize you were here. If you want, we could leave you alone."

"That's all right," Riou answered. "I guess I can't send everyone away, can I? Besides, you two are my friends."

Viktor nodded. "There you go. You know, Riou, you've really grown up with us. When you first arrived, you were nothing but a string bean. Now look at you, you've definitely got some muscle there."

Riou blushed and ducked lower into the water. Still, Flik could see that Viktor's words were the truth. There was a muscle tone on Riou's arms that hadn't been there half a year ago, when Flik had first seen him. "He's been working out every day," Flik commented. "He should be stronger, I'd think. What about you, Viktor? I never see you down on the training grounds."

Viktor was working the soap up into a lather in his hair. "Now what's that supposed to mean, Flik?"

Flik could feel the water's heat seeping into his aching muscles. "Nothing," he bantered. "Nothing at all."

There was a moment of silence, then Viktor turned to Riou. "Hey, Riou, you think I've put on a little weight?"

Riou didn't answer, but Flik did. "Of course you have. What do you expect with the way you eat, fatso?"

Viktor stood up, sending a tremendous wave of water splashing in Flik's direction. "That's a low blow! Who are you calling a fatso?"

"You, tubby."

"Listen up, Flik. This is all muscle, every last bit of it."

"Yeah, big old fat muscle."

Viktor growled, advancing to the center of the pool. "We'll settle this with a wrestling match! Come on, challenge me, and then you'll see how much muscle I've got."

Riou started laughing, though he tried to hide it by covering his mouth. Flik shrugged. "Some other time, Viktor. I don't think Tetsu would like it if we capsized his baths."

Viktor was smiling as he walked back to his side of the bath and sat down. "Figured you'd say something like that. I'll have you know that I only eat five cups of rice at dinner."

"I thought Huan had you on an all-salad diet?" Flik asked.

"Bah! Let's drop the subject, all right?"

Flik had gathered a bucket of hot water, which he upended to get the soap out of his hair. "No problem."

"So, back to the original subject," Viktor replied. "I bet the ladies don't leave you alone, Riou. Not with a physique like that." Riou sank even lower into the water, trying to hide his blushing. Viktor laughed aloud. "That good, huh? No wonder you don't want to talk about it. How about you, Flik?" He turned back to meet Flik's gaze. "How are…things going with you?"

Flik scrubbed his face furiously. "What do you mean with 'things'? You're with me almost all the time, so you know I'm not seeing anyone."

Viktor chuckled. "It's not like I share a room with you. Maybe you're inviting in female company that I don't know about."

"Since when am I like that?" He knew that Viktor was only ribbing him, but the questioning was starting to annoy him. "Listen, my sword's name is my vow of undying love. So, drop this subject, unless you want me to sheathe my sword in you."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. Viktor didn't let the chance slide. "Now, now, you know I'm not like that. But hey, I'm sure there are plenty of women who'd line up for the opportunity."

Flik knew he'd lost the contest. The only thing to do now was make a graceful concession. He gathered a breath and shouted, "Ridiculous! Believe me when I say that there isn't anyone that I like even a little!"

Viktor opened his mouth, but any reply was cut off by an anguished cry from the far wall of the bath. "Not even a little! That's so cruel!" The voice was Nina's, coming from the women's bath. Flik thought he heard a sob and the sound of footsteps splashing through water.

"Ah, love, it is such a dangerous pastime," Viktor murmured. "The heart of a young girl is a fragile thing, which you must handle with care, Flik."

"Shut up!" Flik responded through gritted teeth. Viktor laughed all the more vigorously. Riou, somehow, managed to sink all the way out of sight, except for his brown hair.

"How about we go to Leona's after this?" Viktor said, wiping tears from his eyes.

Leona, as usual, had a stew ready for Viktor and Flik. She was only a little surprised that Riou was with them. Flik was also a little surprised. Usually, Riou retreated to his upstairs room to eat with his sister. Maybe Nanami still wasn't feeling sociable? Whatever the reason, Riou sat down to dine with them. As always, the bar was crowded. The three of them didn't speak, but they did listen in on a few conversations. One, between a Zexen and a man from Toran, was carried on in a lively fashion.

"So you're saying it was like this two years ago, in the south?" Ace asked. He had several empty mugs of beer in front of him.

"Like you wouldn't believe," Sheena replied, putting his feet up on the table. "Tir McDohl had a whole bevy of young girls running around his army. It was quite an exciting time."

Ace belched loudly. "You know, I've always been an open minded sort of man. I wonder if I could get boss to let women into the unit. Or maybe I'll just retire here after the war is over. I could get used to all these short skirts."

"Indeed." Sheena nodded sagely. "Speaking of short skirts, what do you think of Meg and Millie? They've both got so much energy, it's hard to choose. Maybe I could get them as a package deal?"

Ace started laughing, snorting beer out his nose. "Package deal! I like that. But I think I like Tengaar better. There's a girl with fire in her eyes. You know it'd be great."

"Sure, but you've got to know when you have no chance," Sheena cautioned, shaking his head. "She's only got eyes for one man. Even if you pranced around her in the nude, she'd never notice."

"I'd rather she do the prancing," Ace suggested, splashing beer all over his coat. "But I understand. It's kind of like that knife girl that's all over Riou."

Sheena leaned in closer. "Now that we're on the subject of our great leader, how about his sister, Nanami? She may not be as much of a looker, but you know if you got her in bed, that would be it, man."

Ace started laughing, which turned into a gigantic burp. "Wouldn't it, though? You'd have to bring some glue with you, because you'd be pasting yourself back together when it was over. But it would be worth it, I agree."

Riou abruptly got up from his chair, swinging his tonfar into a ready position. The bar went quiet, though most of the women had been giving the two men evil looks for quite some time. Sheena's mouth worked furiously. "Oh…hey, hi, Lord Riou. We were just talking about you, actually."

Ace chuckled nervously. "Yeah, about you. Please don't hurt us!" He ducked under the table.

"Someone just climbed the stairs to the second floor," Riou said softly. "Someone suspicious." He darted around the table, right past Ace and Sheena, running towards the stairs. There was a startled shout from above, and Viktor and Flik were right behind Riou, drawing their weapons as they rumbled up the wooden steps. The landing turned around a corner, heading for the upstairs inn. Riou smashed the door ahead of them right off its hinges, then stopped to assess the situation.

Flik's first impression was of red. A man with an oversized red hat and an equally oversized red and black coat was looming over the innkeeper's husband, Alex, who had fallen to the floor. The intruder's clothing had a ragged look, especially the hem of the coat, which trailed down to the top of his black boots.

Hilda was between Riou and the confrontation, hiding her son Pete behind her maroon dress. Her eyes darted back to the door. "Please, Lord Riou. This man barged in here and started threatening my husband. Please stop him!"

The stranger had lifted Alex up off the floor gripping him by the front of his orange vest. He glanced once in Riou's direction, revealing a face with a long scar running over his thin nose. Then, apparently unconcerned, he went back to questioning Alex. "One more time. What did you find in the Sindar Ruins?"

Riou advanced a few paces into the hall. Flik backed him up by going to right. Viktor went to the left. The space was too narrow for the three of them to line up abreast, so Riou took the lead.

"Silence will not save you," the stranger admonished Alex, pushing him up against the wall.

"You!" another voice shouted. A woman's voice.

This new arrival broke the intruder's calm. "Damn, not you. I haven't forgiven you for landing me in that cell."

Flik recognized the voice, but he didn't want to take his eyes off the intruder and Alex. He could hear her laughter as she walked forward. "You deserved it, Killey. You're always sending others off on false trails, so I thought you needed a taste of your own medicine."

Killey sneered. "You have no idea what you're pursuing, girl. At least Zweig was smart enough to fathom some of it out. That's what made him dangerous. That's why I gave him that information."

Viktor finally risked a look back to confirm who was behind him. With a wary smile, he asked, "You want to clue us in as to what's going on here, Lorelai?"

A woman with black hair hanging to her shoulders stepped forward, her gray cape trailing out behind her. She was another member of the old Liberation Army, another who had seen war two years ago. She finally stepped into Flik's peripheral vision, and he could see that she hadn't changed much in that time. She was still wearing black pants, a yellow shirt, and a blue coat over that. She also carried an impressive array of weapons, including a quiver of arrows and a short bow on her back and a coiled whip at her side. The arm that she was brandishing, however, was an impressive halberd – spear point, axe head, and curved hook all on one pole.

Lorelai's smile was much too friendly for the tense situation. "Why don't you let the poor man go, Killey? You're not going to get any information out of him in this state."

"Put him down," Riou commanded.

"Wait!" Alex pleaded, looking Killey in the face. "You want to know what I found in those ruins. Fine!" He pointed towards his wife and son, then turned his head to face them. "That's the treasure. Right there, in front of you. That's all I found, so if you've got a problem with it, you can go to hell!"

Killey abruptly let Alex drop. "Your words ring true. You are lucky. You dabbled in things that are beyond your comprehension and emerged unscathed. There are many…many who can't say the same. He pulled his oversized hat low. "I'm sorry for the interruption." His red coat swirled as he turned towards the window at the far end of the hall.

"Hey! You can't leave that easily," Viktor shouted, stepping out beyond Riou and raising the Star Dragon Sword.

"Idiot," Killey snapped. "I'm not going anywhere." He suddenly turned again, staring directly at Riou. "You, boy, I'd like to talk to you about what you saw in those Sindar ruins too."

Riou lay a hand across Viktor's arms. "Join my army and then we'll talk."

"Always the same." Killey shook his head and Flik thought he saw the barest hint of a smile. "The things that I do," he muttered under his breath. "Of course I'll join you," he concluded, more loudly.

"And I'll join too," Lorelai added. "Somebody's got to keep an eye on you."

Riou glanced back at her. "Who are you, exactly?"

Lorelai smiled broadly. "We're ruin hunters! We run all over the land, exploring Sindar Ruins."

Killey snorted derisively. "Don't lump me in with that sorry lot. I still say you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into, Lorelai."

"Let's get you two registered," Riou ordered. "Follow me." The five of them walked down the stairs, back down to the bar. By this point, there was an impressive group of armed men waiting at the foot of the stairs, soldiers who'd seen their leader dash up the stairs and were preparing to follow him. Riou waved them off and passed through the bar, heading out the side door and into the entrance hall. It was dark, with only a few lit torches and the moonlight to provide vision.

"Now, there are a few questions that we'll have to ask," Riou said. "Do either of you have experience with military units?"

Killey gave out a startled gasp, his head turned to the right. "Oh hell no," he whispered. "No!" He broke into a run, coat billowing up with his legs, and nearly collided with Luc at the Tablet of Stars.

Lorelai was also looking in that direction. Her face paled. "Damn. Not her." She glanced down the hall. "Don't leave me behind, you coward! Don't leave me to face her!" She sprinted after him, both of them disappearing through the first door they could find.

Riou was left dumbfounded. Flik turned to see what had frightened them so. There, standing in one corner of the hall, was Viki. Moonlight streamed down, illuminating her pale skin, dark hair, and closed eyes. It gave her a very ethereal aura, he decided. At this distance, he could just hear her gentle snores.

"Waffu," she murmured softly.


	71. Chapter 71 His Good Deed

**Chapter 71 – His Good Deed**

Flik yawned hugely as he stood in the great hall, peering out through the windows that overlooked the city. It was a fine morning, and he wished that he were out enjoying the weather, rather than listening to Shu.

"So what exactly are his diplomatic credentials?" Shu asked Fitcher.

Viktor walked over next to Flik and nudged him in the ribs. "Someone didn't get enough sleep last night?"

Flik shook his head. "I thought we were supposed to have this day off," he muttered.

Meanwhile, Fitcher was answering Shu's question. "He calls himself a bandit. A Lampdragon bandit. However, his lack of diplomatic standing shouldn't be an impediment, but an opportunity. We might be able to use this to establish relations with the government of Tinto." Shu stared coolly at Fitcher, who rubbed the back of his neck and added, "Maybe."

"Why do we have to be here?" Flik whispered. "Surely they can do this without us?"

Viktor shrugged. "You never know; it might be important."

"I say we listen to him," Nanami opined, glowering at Shu.

"Thank you for your opinion," Shu responded dryly, glancing sidelong at her. Then he addressed the rest of the assembled generals. "Has anyone here ever heard of the Lampdragon bandits? Ridley? Teresa? Do either of you two know about this organization?" Nanami, now that Shu's back was to her, briefly stuck out her tongue.

Teresa shook her head. Her face was sunburnt, but she'd applied some sort of cream to hide the redness. Her hair was back in order, but she still looked exhausted. "I suppose they could've sprung up since I left Greenhill," she replied.

"I don't think bandit trash would have any official standing with Tinto's government," Ridley added.

Shu nodded. "I see. Is there anyone else who wants to offer anything? Viktor, Flik, you two are awfully quiet. I didn't invite you here so that you could stand by the windows and daydream."

Flik snapped to attention now that Shu's gaze was on him. He turned back to face the rest of the room. Besides those who'd already spoken, Kiba, Klaus, Apple, and Riou were in attendance. All of them were looking in his direction.

"Well, why don't we let him in? We could waste the rest of the day arguing about it, or we could hear what he has to say." Nanami gave Flik a winning smile. Even Riou appeared to favor that answer.

Shu put a hand to his forehead as if feeling at a headache. "Fine. Call this messenger in and let us hear what he has to say."

The messenger turned out to be a teenage boy. At first sight, Flik could tell that he'd come from poverty. His brown hair was an unruly mess. His sleeveless tunic and short trousers were of faded green. Scars crisscrossed his arms and legs. His feet were bare and blistered. It was a wonder that he had all his teeth.

For a moment, he stared around the room, completely in awe of all the famous people he was around. Flik, feeling pity for him, prompted, "What is your name, messenger from Tinto?"

The boy leaped into the air. When he landed, he went into a deep crouch, throwing his face to the floor. "Where are my manners? Sir Riou…no that's not it. Lord Riou - damn! Lord Riou, great and mighty-"

"Just Riou will do," Riou replied. "Please, look up at me when you talk."

The messenger's face was awestruck, but when he saw Riou more closely, he broke out into a friendly smile. "The name's Koyu, Lord Riou. It's a pleasure to meet you!" That last part came out as "tameetcha" to Flik's ears.

"And what is it that you want Lord Riou to do?" Flik continued.

Koyu jumped again. "Oh, yes! Let me tell you. We are the three Lampdragon bandits. There's brother Gijimu and sister Lo Wen and me and we were all living as best we could in the mountains and the Highland Army guys came and poked around so we picked up our weapons and we drove them out, yes we did! They were afraid of us, the three Lampdragon bandits. We got them to run away." He looked around for appreciation.

"You what? Who did what again?" Ridley asked. Flik could hear the skepticism and confusion in the kobold's voice.

"Me and my brother and my sister," Koyu answered, smiling. "But then, when we thought every thing was all right, these strange guys attacked. What could they be, we thought. They were these pale faced guys that looked like dead people and they attacked. They were so hard to fight. You could lop off limbs and they wouldn't even say 'ouch'!"

"Zombies!" Viktor shouted, anger on his voice.

"Yeah…uhh…zombies," Koyu affirmed. "That's what Marlowe was saying too. He said he read it in a book but I don't read a lot of books so I wouldn't know. But there were too many of them…zombies that is, not books. They're crawling all over the mountains and getting closer to the big city. That's why my brother sent me here." He bowed his head again, though he remained standing. "I, Koyu, beg Lord Riou to hear our request and help my brother and sister. That is my request."

"Damn, it must be Neclord," Viktor said. "The damn coward's always hiding behind his ghouls."

"It is possible," Apple replied, in a detached tone. "During the Liberation War in Toran, Neclord also employed zombie soldiers to try and take over a province."

"Riou, we've got to check on this," Viktor appealed. "I can't wait to get my hands around his neck and squeeze the life out of him. He got away from me here, but I'll pay him back for good this time." Flik glanced over at his friend. His habitual smile had become closer to a snarl, and his eyes shone with an intense fervor.

Shu coughed to get their attention. "We cannot deploy the New State Army recklessly. The terrain in Tinto is broken and mountainous, full of ravines where an army might get caught and torn to pieces. Furthermore, there is nothing to gain by doing this. The government of Tinto has made it perfectly clear that they intend to sit out the war. Right now, we have the strategic initiative; we can't afford to waste it by frittering away our resources."

"People are suffering," Nanami shouted back. "You don't care about anyone!"

Red anger began to creep its way up Shu's face, but he controlled it. "Now is not the time or place for this argument."

Viktor walked towards the dais, spreading his hands out in a pleading gesture. "What about a small group? Riou, Flik, and I could go into Tinto together. Neclord's got to be stopped, don't you think so, Riou?"

Riou had been studying Koyu throughout the discussion. "I've been wondering, why hasn't Gustav sent soldiers to help you?"

"Who knows?" Koyu shrugged his shoulders. "I don't bother much with the city folk and as long as we don't bother their mining they don't bother us." Ridley was left scratching the top of his head trying to sort out all of those "bothers."

"So they don't care about you either?" Nanami asked.

"I guess not, pretty girl," Koyu answered, blushing a little at the words.

Ridley growled in displeasure. "Nanami is not some 'pretty girl,' pup! She is the sister of Lord Riou, leader of this army." For her part, Nanami was blushing too.

"Si-sister," Koyu gasped. "So, she's like your older sister?"

Riou nodded. "I think we should help them, Shu. I intend to go with Viktor and Flik to Tinto."

"And what about my meticulous plans, Lord Riou? There are operations that must commence while the weather is still good." Shu appeared more exasperated than angry, sighing heavily at the end of his argument.

Riou face him. "You must trust me on this, Shu. The people of Tinto need help, and we are able to give it. Don't we have a duty to do this?"

"That's my little brother!" Nanami interrupted.

"There will be time to do battle when I return," Riou vowed. "I promise."

Shu looked as though he'd bit into something unpleasant. "Then I will support you in this. Ridley-" the kobold general snapped to attention "-ready your kobolds for immediate departure. I'm also attaching Freed's South Window infantry to you for the duration. You will proceed to Tinto via Drakemouth and place yourself at Lord Riou's disposal."

Ridley bowed at the waist. "Yes, Lord. It will be an honor."

Shu scanned the room. "Klaus, I would like you to go along with Lord Riou and serve as his strategist for this campaign."

"You will not be going?" Klaus asked.

"There are things that must be done here to prepare for the coming campaign to liberate all of Dunan. I am certain that you will be more than adequate in my place."

Kiba put a hand on his son's shoulder. "You will do fine, my boy. Now is your chance to prove yourself."

Klaus swallowed. "Of course, father."

Shu's gaze swung back across the room landing on Flik. Flik couldn't help but feel a touch of nerves. "Unfortunately, I must beg that Flik remain here."

"No chance," Flik shouted. "I'm not staying behind on this one."

"Flik, I can recruit soldiers into your unit. I can make sure they have the proper training to fight. Only you can meld them into an effective force under your command. I need you to stay behind to do that, otherwise I'll have to strip you of your command and give it to someone else." Shu's tone was entirely business, but the threat was very real. "I need your scouts as a fighting unit, and I need them ready for the upcoming campaign."

Flik looked to Viktor, who gave him a slight nod and a smile. Heaving out a huge sigh, Flik acceded to the demand. "All right. Your words make sense, Shu. I'll stay behind this time."

"Don't worry, Flik, I'll save some of the fun for you. Maybe I'll bring back an ear or something." Viktor sounded positively eager to come to grips with Neclord, maybe too eager. Flik hoped his friend wouldn't do anything reckless when confronted with the opportunity.

With the decision made, the great hall started to clear out, but Flik remained behind, eyes on the floor. He heard Apple question Shu. "Do you really think it's wise to let Lord Riou go like that? He'll be going into tremendous danger."

"You told me once that you didn't want me pushing him into things. Perhaps it's time to give him some rein and see what he does. Honestly, there is danger in any direction he takes now, and I like it no better than you do." Shu and Apple's footsteps echoed as they walked down from the dais. "Flik, I'm glad you chose to remain behind." Shu's tone was friendly, and Flik looked up to see the strategist regarding him with a warm expression. "It shows that you have a sense of responsibility to your men. Soon, I shall be reorganizing the command structure of the army for the forthcoming campaign. That said, I will need responsible generals who are capable of independent thought, like yourself." He nodded and concluded, "Carry on, general. You have your men to see to." He and Apple walked on, out of the room.

Flik pondered those words for a moment. Was Shu telling him that he was in line for a promotion? Flik wasn't sure how he felt about that. During the Liberation War his unit had served directly under Tir McDohl. He was comfortable in the role that he had. Still, if Shu needed him for greater things, then all he could do was his best.

He left the great hall, his strides carrying him towards the barracks. It was time to go back to the business of leading his men. He bustled into the building, calling for his men to turn out for inspection. Before the inspection could begin, there was one piece of administration that Flik had to take care of.

Somewhere during the fighting against Luca Blight, the senior sergeant Tarrance had disappeared and never returned. Flik didn't know if he were dead, missing, or captured. He'd kept the slot open, hoping that the promising young man might show up. He hadn't and now it was time to fill that position. He called in a file leader by the name of Al, a tall, thin man that had joined his unit in Muse City.

As the candidate closed the door to Flik's office in the back of the barracks, Flik studied him one more time. Since joining, Al had always cut a dashing figure among the mercenaries, managing to stay immaculately groomed, almost to the point of being a dandy. His long, black hair was tied behind his neck by a green ribbon. Moreover, he'd provided his own mount and weapons upon joining Flik's men. The bored son of a noble, perhaps? It was a mercenary's prerogative to hide his past, so Flik didn't ask any questions now. Whatever this man's background, he'd proved his toughness by surviving to this point, including making it through the ride around Muse. To underscore this point, Al didn't move with his usual panache today, but shuffled stiffly to attention.

"You asked for me, captain?"

Flik nodded. No time for doubts. Hopefully this man would grow into his job. "Al, I'm giving you a raise. To go along with that, I'm giving you Tarrance's company. Congratulations, senior sergeant." He stood up and offered his hand.

As expected, the tiredness fell off the new sergeant's face. "Sir, yes sir!" He snapped a smart salute and then stepped forward to shake Flik's hand.

"Well, let's see how the men look." Flik and Al walked through the now empty barracks to the field beyond, where the mounted archers waited at attention. While Al went to take Tarrance's old position, Flik mounted yet another new horse, a mare with a brown coat that faded to white with brown spots along her back, quarters, and below her knees. He wondered how long this one would last.

Turning his attention away from the horse, he looked out over his unit. As Shu had said, there were plenty of new recruits. A quick glance suggested that he was probably back to full strength – five hundred men. Here and there had could pick out the faces of his veterans, men who'd been with him in Toran and East Muse, before the burning of the fort. They were just a bare handful now. There were others, too, men like Al who'd been recruited in Muse City and South Window Province. They'd seen action against Kiba and Luca Blight. Altogether, they amounted to sixty men.

The recruits looked fresh and young. Flik wondered what they would do if they were faced by Culgan's veterans. "Gentlemen," Flik said, pitching his voice up to carry, "welcome to the mounted scouts – first into battle and last to retreat!" The men, raw recruits and old veterans, cheered at that. Flik maintained a tight smile. Nobody needed to tell him that his unit had the highest casualty rate of any in the army. Many of these eager faces would become death masks in the battles ahead. When the cheering subsided, he continued, "We are the eyes and ears of the New State Army! We ride further and fight harder so that the army might have victory!" More cheers. The young men looked eager to meet an opponent, the veterans smiled with pride.

Flik drew his sword, an action quickly followed by the four senior sergeants, then the file leaders, and finally the regular men. The rising sun reflected off of a veritable field of glistening metal. "Now, prove to me you have what it takes!" Flik shouted. "We ride, in column, by company, follow me!" He turned his mare and trotted down the line, past Al's new company, heading for the street leading out from the mustering field. Al's men swung into column, not perfectly, but in good time. They were followed by the other three companies, Jerrim's, Danel's, and Rossgard's bringing up the rear.

People stopped to watch as the procession made its way through the streets of the city, heading for the south gates. Flik had to keep the pace slow out of respect for the civilians who shared the streets, but once beyond the city limits, he put the men through a series of maneuvers. At one point they even shadowed the long column of kobolds and infantry marching south out of the city – Ridley's soldiers heading off to support Riou in Tinto.

In total, there were only four falls severe enough that the men wouldn't be able to return to service. As the sun was setting, Flik led his men back through the streets of the city and pronounced himself reasonably satisfied with the day's work. Dismissing the men, he ate dinner, and climbed into bed with every intention to do more of the same tomorrow.

So they did, but a surprise awaited Flik as he led the men back to barracks for a second day. A soldier from another unit and a civilian were waiting for him on the mustering field.

The soldier spoke first. "Captain Flik, this man has a concern-"

"Bloody hell I have a concern," the civilian interrupted, striding towards Flik. He was a young man, younger than Flik, with blond hair and good clothes. He would've been handsome except that his face was sporting a black eye and his cheek was swollen. "Your lot of scoundrels came and abducted my sister, roughed up me and my father, and damaged our property. I demand satisfaction!"

All activity in the yard stopped. "Hold everyone here!" Flik commanded. "Senior sergeants, no one is dismissed without my authority. The men are to form at attention." As the mercenaries started moving again, Flik pondered the allegation. He hated to think that his men might've done this, but it was within the realm of possibility.

"Let's go into my office," Flik suggested, trying to calm the young man. "I want to hear the details."

"No!" he shouted. "I want the perpetrators brought to justice. There!" He pointed to the assembling men. "There's the ringleader! Arrest him!"

Flik's eyes followed the line the fingers described, leading to one of his men, who shifted nervously in his saddle. Flik sighed; it was one of the veterans, a ranker in Rossgard's company. "John, if you would come over here." The veteran slipped out of his saddle and slowly walked over. He was one of the ones from Toran, a man Flik's age with reddish hair and a scar on his jaw. He looked shamefaced at first, but, seeing his accuser, his expression changed to anger. "Did you kidnap this man's sister?" Flik asked

"Let me explain, captain."

"I didn't ask for an explanation, soldier! I asked for an answer. Did you or didn't you?"

The veteran crumpled under Flik's gaze. "I did, sir." Flik was actually grateful for the quick confession. Interrogating his men wasn't something that he liked, not when they were likely to put up a wall of silence to protect their own.

"He wasn't the only one!" the accuser shouted. "There were a whole bunch of them. They all need to be hanged. And my family needs compensation!"

Flik was liking the accuser less with each passing moment. "What is your sister's name?"

"Natalie!" This from both men.

"How dare you speak her name!" the accuser roared.

This brought John to anger. "How dare you pretend to care for her! You're only here for the potch!"

"Silence!" Flik commanded, stepping between the two of them before they could come to blows.

Only his soldier complied. "Now he lies!" the accuser yelled. "String him up!"

Flik turned to face him fully. "Shut up. Why don't you stop agitating my men and let me finish my investigation, thank you very much."

About ten soldiers had gathered behind John. All of them were veterans. "We were with him, captain," one of them said. "You shouldn't make everyone else suffer for what we did."

Flik sighed. "Thank you, but I'll take my own counsel." He looked back at John. He didn't see the face of a rapist there, but faces could be misleading. "Where is Natalie now?"

"We left her with Leona and Barbara."

Flik called Rossgard over. "Did you know of this?"

"No, sir. I heard them talking about someone getting 'what was coming to him,' but I didn't think to make any connection."

Flik nodded. "Get to Leona's. Find this girl. Bring her here. I want to hear what she has to say." Rossgard rushed off to follow the orders. Flik shook his head and tried to calm down. "What's your name?" he asked the accuser.

"Andrew." He seemed very uncomfortable now, frowning deeply and shaking his head. "Look, all I want is for Natalie to come home and for my family to be compensated. There's no need to bring her here. The fact that she's not at home is evidence enough."

"I think there is a need," Flik replied. "Her testimony is critical." The sun was setting, casting long shadows that contrasted with yellow light against the white walls of the compound. A cool wind was picking up off the lake. "Why don't we go inside?" Flik asked.

"No!" Andrew practically shouted, his teeth and eyes clenched tight in anger. "You're not getting me inside there, alone with you…barbarians!"

Flik tried hard to suppress his growing dislike. He was sorely tempted to throw this whole controversy up to someone with more authority. But who? Neither Riou nor Shu would want to be bothered by this. He sighed. He was the commanding officer; it was his responsibility.

Rossgard was returning, escorting a slim, blonde girl in a green dress and white apron through the gates. She was young, possibly ten years younger than Flik, and was wide-eyed at having been summoned so urgently. Her eyes found her brother and her expression changed. Was it fear? Distaste? Or just a trick of the shadows? Flik wasn't sure.

Andrew rushed over in her direction. "Natalie, is that you? Thank the heavens you're all right. We can put this whole silly business behind us and go home." He reached out to grab her arm.

She snatched it away and backed up, nearly retreating right back to Rossgard. "I don't want to," she answered. "I'm not going home!" There was movement in Flik's peripheral vision. John was walking forward.

"You silly girl, don't you know what kind of scandal this is for Father?" Andrew pleaded, his voice deceptively gentle. "It's time to stop this game of yours, playing at romance with a mercenary." She drew a step further away from her brother, shaking her head. His face contorted with anger. "Stupid bitch! You will come home this instant!" His hand darted out, open-palmed, in her direction. Flik's legs twitched into motion. He wasn't the only one.

Rossgard caught Andrew's hand before it reached its intended target. "Perhaps you should reconsider," he said.

"Unhand me, mongrel!" Andrew swung his other hand, balled into a fist, at Rossgard.

The senior sergeant dodged the blow easily, then took Andrew's legs out from under him. "Wrong move," Rossgard declared menacingly, pinning him on the ground.

Natalie bounded over towards John, wrapping herself around him in a hug. Flik paused momentarily to study them. She absolutely adored him. He looked a little embarrassed by the affection. That was something else to consider, but not before dealing with the matter at hand. He walked over to where Rossgard stood over Andrew. The senior sergeant hauled Andrew back up off the ground so that Flik could look into eyes that blazed with rage.

"I think her desire to stay with us is pretty evident," Flik said. He was surprised at how calm he felt.

"Fine," Andrew conceded. "If she wants to whore herself out to mercenaries, then she'll never be allowed home. Just give me the potch!"

Flik's eyebrows jumped. "Potch?"

"Your men trashed our home! They injured me and my father!"

Flik stared at him coldly. A ring of soldiers had surrounded them now, all waiting for his next command. "Get me a string of potch. One string."

"What? What is this?" Andrew sputtered, as one of Flik's men ran off to follow the order.

Flik didn't answer until he had the potch in hand. He offered it to Andrew. "Here. One hundred potch. That'll cover the cost for some medicine down at the apothecary."

"Damn you!" Andrew shouted, wriggling in Rossgard's hold. "Damn you, my father's a barrister! He'll bring charges against you and your whole rotten army! We have our rights, you stupid mercenary. Unhand me!"

Flik nodded. Rossgard let the man fall. As Andrew was getting up, dusting himself off, Flik offered the potch again. Andrew slapped the string away, the coins bouncing and rolling through the dust. "Let it be known the injured party refused compensation," Flik commented. Andrew spat at him.

A dozen of Flik's men bore Andrew back to the turf. Flik waited just a heartbeat and ordered, "Off of him! Let him go!" After the soldiers let him back up, Flik could see that Andrew was sporting a bloody nose. "Why don't you leave?" Flik said, without rancor. Andrew didn't reply, but turned and sprinted away. Flik's men gave a hearty cheer.

Flik turned back to where John and Natalie were still locked in their embrace. One problem was solved, but now he'd just inherited another. He walked over to them and glowered until they acknowledged his presence. Both of them, by some minor miracle, had the sense to look ashamed.

"You two. My office. Now."

The cheering stopped, subsiding into quiet whispers. Flik heard somebody comment, "Old John's going to get it now. The captain'll tear him a new asshole for this."

"Rossgard! Dismiss these men to quarters!"

"You heard the captain!" the senior sergeant bellowed. "Get your asses off this field!"

Flik led the two lovers inside and back to his office. The two of them stood nervously in front of his desk while he took a seat and studied them for a moment. He decided that his initial observation was correct. Natalie, being much younger, was besotted with John. John liked her, and liked being with her, but there was nothing that suggested a firm commitment in his eyes.

Flik sighed, deciding to tackle the easier part of this problem first. He shifted to look at the girl. "Do you love John?"

"Of course," she squeaked, then blushed. She certainly was very attractive while blushing.

"Have you spoken with Leona and Barbara about staying with us?" Flik had seen enough to know that where there were soldiers, there would also be women. Many of them played a vital role, in fact. Very few of his men could sew or cook. His mercenaries would've ground to a halt long ago without their help. He and Viktor had decided, when they formed the unit, that any woman that remained with them had to have the approval of Leona and Barbara. Those two also made sure that there was no abuse of women by the soldiers.

"They said I could," Natalie answered. "Please, sir, can't I stay with John?"

John's eyes suddenly took on a worried look, as if he understood where this conversation was headed. Flik forestalled any complaints with a glance. Then turned back. "Thank you. If you'll excuse us, but I have some things to talk about with my soldier. Rossgard will take you back to Leona's. You'll find him at the duty desk, right by the front doors."

She was smart enough to recognize the dismissal and gave John a sweet smile before closing the door behind her. Flik watched him watching her, then waited until the soldier's head came back around to face him. "So, did you actually organize this little raid on her father's house?" Flik asked.

"Sir, she wanted us to-"

Flik held up a hand to stop him. "I don't care what she wanted," he interjected, though not harshly. "Did you organize the raid?"

"Yes, sir."

John cringed, but Flik merely smiled. In fact, he was having trouble not chuckling. He gestured towards a chair and, in a casual tone, suggested, "Why don't you pull up a chair?" When John had finished pulling the chair into place, Flik continued, "It takes a lot initiative to organize a stunt like that and pull it off successfully. You know, a file leader has to have a lot of initiative. He has to be able to organize his squad on the field of battle."

John's eyes lit up at the mention of "file leader." Flik's smile deepened; there was potential in this soldier, potential that he didn't want to waste. He knew that sometimes the best thing to do with a troublemaker was put him in a position to make the most of his skills. "A file leader also has to be responsible. It's his job to make sure his men are ready to go and make it through the fighting. It's not unlike raising children, say." John's throat worked in a nervous swallow.

"And, if you can handle a little responsibility, you might be in line for greater things – maybe sergeant, maybe senior sergeant. Do you know how to read and write?" Flik asked.

"I…uh, a little, sir."

Flik pulled open a drawer and produced a pen and sheet of paper. "Try your name, first," he ordered. John scrawled it out. Flik read it and nodded. "Okay. Now write this: the company will march northwest for two miles to the town of Roxford and hold positions there." It was legible, but only because Flik knew what was on the paper. He set it down. "Work on your writing and you might even end up as a full officer. They'll need those, since the army's growing."

"You think so, sir?"

"It could happen," Flik hedged. "But only if you take responsibility and work at it. Think about this: you, your children, your beautiful wife, a house in the city, and an officer's pension. Sure beats the hell out of breaking dirt for the rest of your life, right?"

John was thinking about it. Flik could see him working it out in his head. "It does," John replied. "But, will a priest even marry us? All I ever hear them talking about is not stepping out of line or you'll get burned."

"Don't worry about that," Flik answered, trying to sound comforting. "Most of them are more concerned about what you're going to do than what you've already done. We'll find you some priest who's served with soldiers before. He'll understand what this is about."

Actually, Flik wasn't as confident as he sounded. He'd not had much to do with priests during his time in service. He wondered if he ought to speak with Gantetsu on the subject. Could Gantetsu perform the marriage? No, wait, he was a monk. Did that make a difference? Flik found he didn't know.

Those were concerns for another day. He pulled out another sheet of paper and started writing on it. "I'm issuing you a pass, John. Why don't you go down to Leona's and talk this all over with Natalie. I'm sure she'll be interested to hear what you have to say." He stamped the paper, stood up, and offered it, along with his hand, to John. "Congratulations, file leader. That's a very beautiful woman you've got waiting for you, so I won't keep you any longer."

In a daze, John accepted both the paper and the hand, which he shook vigorously. "Sir, I, sir, thank you, sir!"

Flik smiled. "Just be back here by roll call tomorrow."

"Yes sir!"

Once John was gone, Flik settled back down into his chair with a deep sigh. He really didn't like playing "father" for his men, but in this case, he felt it had to be done. He didn't want to leave a girl destitute because she'd chosen one of his men over her family. In a way, the life he'd described was an echo of the one he'd wanted to make with Odessa after all the fighting was over. Hopefully John would be wise enough to make the right choice.

He got up, excused himself from the barracks and returned to his room to sleep, feeling as though he'd done his good deed for the day. Many hours later, he awoke to the sound of someone knocking at his door.

It was Apple. "Flik, are you awake in there? Shu wants to see you, immediately!"

Flik groaned and rolled out of bed, stuffing himself into his shirt before opening the door. Apple had an intense, worried look on her face. "What's this about?" Flik asked.

She shook her head. "I'm not sure myself. He said something about someone named Andrew. He said you'd know what he was talking about. Whatever happened, Flik, I've rarely seen Shu this pissed!"


	72. Chapter 72 The Face of the Undead

**Chapter 72 – The Face of the Undead**

"Three hundred thousand potch," Shu announced, leaning over his little table, eyes boring into Flik's.

Rather than meet that gaze, Flik quickly took in Shu's room. Before, the strategist had used the excuse that he was still moving in to explain the mess. If anything, the room was even messier now. The boxes were still in their corner, but the walls had been plastered with papers – maps, actually. Flik studied them out of the corner of his eye, interested and confused by what he saw. He understood the arrows snaking north from Dunan Castle, entering Greenhill Province from the south. That was an obvious first move for the New State Army.

But after that – the arrows raced north into Matilda, then east into Highland itself. Other arrows described feints into East Muse and the city of Coronet. What was Shu thinking? Matilda was officially neutral. Did he have some plan to change that, or was he simply going to invade anyway? Even more audacious, to Flik's mind, was the idea of attacking Highland without first securing Muse Province. If the campaign succeeded, they'd certainly have victory, but if it failed…they'd be cut off in the middle of enemy territory. It was not a pleasant thought.

"Three hundred thousand potch," Shu repeated, catching Flik's attention, "that's how much we've settled on. All of it in coin, mind you. They won't accept promises on paper. You have no idea how this will affect our army's finances."

Flik's anger got the best of him. Now he matched Shu's stare. "There's no way in hell that the damages are worth that much!"

Shu stood up straight. "Ah, but you don't know that, do you? You didn't send any men over to find out, did you?"

That cut the momentum out of Flik's anger. He sat back down in his chair. "No, I guess I didn't."

"You were two busy playing the self-righteous hero to remember that it's your duty to investigate all sides of the claim."

"They don't deserve the money," Flik replied, a bit petulantly. "I'm certain that my men rescued her from an abusive situation."

"That is not the job of the New State Army," Shu answered. "We have civil courts for abuse cases."

"I wonder if she would've chosen that route," Apple mumbled, frowning. Flik wondered too. Most of the women he knew would never have accepted an abusive relationship. Certainly Odessa wouldn't have. He couldn't even imagine Apple accepting that sort of life, but that didn't mean that other women wouldn't.

Shu sighed and sat down in his chair. "All I ask is that next time you exercise better judgement. Meanwhile, we have to plan on how to contain the damage."

"Contain?" Flik asked.

"Indeed. You don't think I'm going to let them extort potch out of this army and get away with it?" Flik gaped, listening to Shu speak. "I've already given Richmond a contract to dig up as much dirt about them as he can find. Rest assured, if it's there, he will find it. I'll turn opinion against them so quickly that they'll be out of the city by the end of next month. Possibly out of the country."

"Why?" Flik asked, aghast. "I don't want that kind of revenge."

Shu's tone was cold. "It has nothing to do with justice, and little to do with you. The New State Army simply cannot afford to pay every person who claims a grievance against us, not at that rate. So, I must make an example of them, all because you failed to do your duty properly."

Flik looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry."

"If it helps, know that they won't go into exile in poverty. Now, look up, Flik. I need you to be ready to lead your men out, this very day, so stop wallowing in guilt."

Shu's words and impatient tone brought Flik's head back up. "You're sending me out? Where?"

"The Wingers have brought news from Drakemouth. They've seen zombies gathering in the mountains around that town. We have to go now and secure it, lest Ridley and Riou get cut off from the rest of Jowston."

Flik jumped up from his chair, relieved that Shu still trusted him enough to go help Riou. "I'll get on it right away, sir."

"Apple and I are coming with you. This situation is developing far too rapidly for me to be comfortable here in the castle. Go ahead and get your men ready, Flik."

Taking that as the dismissal, Flik ducked around the potted plant and out the door. He was feeling the sting of Shu's lecture, but he was more upset with himself. Once again he'd let his emotions get in the way of his judgement. He shook his head, walking down the stairs towards the entrance hall. His actions had felt right, but that didn't make them right. When he arrived at the barracks, Flik found another unintended consequence of his actions.

"Captain, I'm getting married!" one of his men shouted.

"I'm getting hitched too!" another announced.

In an instant, Flik was bombarded with nuptial declarations. A dozen expectant men gathered around him, waiting for his response.

"That's great, guys." Flik smiled. "I'm glad to see that you're taking responsibility for your emotions. Now saddle up, because we're moving out to help Lord Riou in Tinto." Disappointment flickered across several of those faces, but then the senior sergeants, having heard the orders, got the soldiers moving. Flik was torn between amusement and annoyance. Did the men really believe he was handing out promotions as wedding gifts? He'd promoted John because the ranker had shown promise in organizing and carrying out his little raid, not for any other reason.

News that his men were departing spread throughout the castle in a hurry. About halfway through the preparations, Tengaar and Hix burst into the barracks. "Is it true that Shu's sending you away as a punishment for what you did, Flik?" Tengaar asked. Anger was written clearly on her face, while Hix was frowning with worry.

"How did you hear about this?" Flik responded, tightening the straps on one of his saddlebags.

"Leona was talking about it," Tengaar answered. Her expression suddenly turned to a smile. "I think what you did was very noble. Any 'True Warrior' would be proud of you." Her face went back to irate in an instant. "All that strategist ever seems to think about is potch. There is no honor in him at all."

Hix looked around nervously. "You shouldn't say such things here. Besides, Lord Riou has faith in him."

Flik laughed, then muttered, "What game are you playing with me, Shu?" This made Tengaar and Hix both look at him, questions obvious on their faces. Flik laughed again. "He's sending me after Riou and Viktor. It looks like there's some trouble in Tinto. If sending me back into action is Shu's punishment, then I'm glad for it."

"It's that nasty vampire again, isn't it?" Tengaar practically growled. "Don't ask me how I know, Flik. I know exactly what zombies appearing in Tinto means, even if no one tells me."

"I wasn't hiding it from you," Flik lied. "You know how dangerous Neclord is, so I didn't want you worrying about him."

"Don't condescend to me," Tengaar snapped. "I want him dead, Flik, and we're coming with you to make sure you and Viktor do the job right!"

"You didn't tell me that," Hix mumbled.

"Well now I am," Tengaar retorted. "Pack our bags, because we're joining Flik again."

"I haven't approved that," Flik said.

Now it was Hix's turn to surprise him. "But you made us members of your unit, right? You can't march off to fight and leave us behind. I'm a…warrior; I'm not afraid of zombies." There was a slight tremor in his voice, as if he were trying to convince himself of this.

Tengaar wrapped her arms around him. "Of course you're not. You're going to be a great warrior, Hix. I know it."

"I'm not leaving you two behind, not if you're set on joining us. Just remember that you're under my command," Flik admonished. "I expect you to follow orders." They both nodded. "Okay. Tengaar, you're going to want to change-"

Nina dashed through the still open door. "Sir Flik, is true that that meanie Shu is sending you away? Is it true that you stood up for that girl's marriage to one of your men?" Without waiting for an answer, she crashed into him, throwing her arms around his chest. "That's so romantic!"

Flik sighed, then opened his mouth to explain, knowing that there was no way from dissuading Nina from coming along with him. Not when she'd stood beside him and faced Luca Blight. Tengaar smirked and commented, "I hope she can keep up on horseback."

Before noon, Flik's augmented company, plus Shu and Apple, was on the road, riding south from Dunan Castle. The weather had turned stifling again, with a wind like an open oven blowing in Flik's face. Sweat stung his eyes and plastered his hair against his scalp. The heat also meant that the pace had to be slow, or else they'd arrive at Drakemouth without a fighting force. At least fresh water was plentiful, as the road bordered the wide and languid Granias River.

Late in the afternoon, they arrived at the bridge that spanned the river, the crossing from South Window to Two River. It was a long, concrete viaduct of many arches. During the Highland invasion of South Window, the Two River side had been partially demolished and had only been recently repaired. Flik led his men across, struck by how the arches and their reflections formed long ovals in the flow. The water at the far shore seemed to glow with fire from the setting sun.

Once on the other side, he had his men prepare to camp for the night. Nina had held up well during the ride, but once down from her horse, she fainted. Tengaar shrugged and ordered Hix to carry her inside one of the tents. She and Apple disappeared after Hix. Moments later, Tengaar escorted Hix back out. "We'll look after her," Tengaar said. "Can't very well trust a man to this job anyway."

Flik tried not to let the worry show on his face. "Thanks." He watched Apple emerge from the tent, carrying several towels in her hands. She headed off in the direction of the river.

Rather than wait by the tent for any news, he joined Shu, Hix, and his senior sergeants for a meal of stew. Flik listened with half an ear as the sergeants detailed the status of the unit. He was very conscious of Shu sitting with them. When the report was finished, Shu quietly said, "You will have to push harder tomorrow, Flik. We must make Drakemouth by sundown."

"If the weather's as hot as today-" Flik could feel himself frowning "-we'll arrive strung out and exhausted."

"A risk I'll have to take. The Winghordes will tell me in the morning if we're already too late."

Flik's frown deepened as he worried about Viktor. To get his mind off that, he changed the subject. "Were you the one who told everyone about my 'punishment'?"

"Of course. You will go out the martyr and come home the hero who helped save Tinto. I can't imagine a better set of circumstances to make you look good in comparison to your accusers. Richmond has already given me his preliminary report. I'll run them out of the city within a week of our return."

Flik's frown twisted into a grimace. Shu spoke so casually of building up and breaking reputations. Was Tengaar right about the strategist, that he was a man without honor? Flik excused himself to make one last inspection of the camp before turning in. The evening had become muggy, and he could hear the mosquitoes buzzing around him. He slapped when one bit him on the wrist, knowing that it would do no good.

Tengaar stood outside of Nina's tent, waiting as Flik approached. When he inquired about Nina's health, Tengaar answered, "She'll recover, but I don't know how she'll hold up tomorrow."

Flik nodded. Here was something else to worry about that he ultimately had little control over. "Thanks for looking after her," he replied. He started to turn away, but Tengaar stepped around to block his way.

"Send her back to the castle," she demanded. "She's not ready for what's coming."

Flik pondered that. "Well, the weather could be better in the morning. If not, we'll just have to make sure she gets enough water. I'm going to have everyone carry extra."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it!" Tengaar answered, pointing at him. "She's not ready to face zombies. What'll happen if she runs off in the middle of battle?"

He crossed his arms. "She did well enough when we were facing Luca Blight. She's got a water rune, which will be helpful with injuries. As long as she's willing to follow orders, I'm not going to send her away."

Tengaar puffed out an angry breath. "She's a twit who thinks she'll be able to get into your pants if she stays close enough to you. And all you're doing is encouraging her."

"I am not," Flik argued, putting his hands on his hips. "I've made it very clear that I'm not interested in her."

"Are you sure?" She smiled sardonically. "She seems to think you are. Maybe you're the sort of man who likes a little female attention. Maybe you're the sort of man who will string an idiot girl along because it strokes your ego."

"I have only ever cared for one woman," Flik seethed. How did Tengaar know exactly which buttons to push? "Odessa is the only woman I've ever cared for. Odessa is the only one I've ever wanted."

"Then tell Nina that." Tengaar gestured back towards the tent. "Crush her hopes now, Flik, rather than let them keep growing."

That sounded like something Viktor had told him. Thinking it over in his head, he knew it made sense. But when he opened his mouth, he said, "She'll figure it out eventually. I don't want to hurt her."

He turned and walked away, ignoring Tengaar when she shouted, "Coward!" In truth, he didn't want to deal with it. He'd ignored Kimberly, and she'd taken the hint. He'd ignore Nina too. That would work. It had to. He found his tent and tried to sleep in the stifling heat.

It was warm the following morning. The rising sun was a distant specter of red, partially obscured by clouds on the eastern horizon. As Flik's men were forming up in the growing light, a pair of Wingers swooped down out of the sky, conferred with Shu and Apple, and took to the air again. Flik kept his face a mask of calm as Shu walked over.

"Drakemouth is clear, but the mountains are crawling with the undead. We must reach the town today if we are to have any hope of securing communications with Riou." Shu paused only to mount his horse. "Ride hard, Flik."

Flik spared one sweeping glance at his command. Many of the new faces were already exhausted from the previous ride. Tengaar had placed herself near Nina. Both girls regarded each other coldly. Hix, on Nina's other side, shuddered involuntarily. "You heard the strategist," Flik said. "We move!"

They did, riding at a trot for the greater part of each hour, slowing to rest the horses briefly, then picking up the pace again. The sun rose out of the cloud cover and the day turned instantly hot, as if someone had pressed a switch. The road, little more than a rutted dirt trail, passed directly west, through the woods and marshes that Flik remembered from his travels to rally the kobolds. The way was mostly clear, but every so often they had to slow to remove fallen trees from across the path. He caught glimpses of old houses, little more than stone shells, remnants of a time when this land was worked, before it had fallen on hard times.

In the afternoon they left forest and fen behind, the road rising up and joining the thoroughfare between Two River City and the Kobold Village. Their heading turned south of west. The sun beat directly down on Flik. He could feel his skin protesting the heat. He and his men drank the extra water they'd gathered in great gulps. That didn't prevent some of them from collapsing. They'd brought remounts, but horses staggered from exhaustion regardless. To the right, the Forest of the Unicorn seemed to shimmer in the heat, almost a phantasm on the landscape. Directly ahead, the mountains of Tinto grew larger and larger.

Eventually, the shadow of those mountains reached out to engulf Flik's men. Though the sun's warmth was no longer oppressive, Flik could feel heat radiating off the road, horses, and his own skin. They passed several small villages where the people eyed them warily. Though this was part of Two River Province, the people working this semi-arid land were not unlike those of Tinto. They had never felt the threat of Highland. They had no reason to trust the New State Army now.

Drakemouth was the westernmost of these towns, indistinguishable from the rest save that it occupied one end of a pass through the mountains. Flik was glad that his destination was finally in sight. He was exhausted, and didn't fancy riding through the night. His skin felt sticky, covered with dust that had mixed with sweat and dried in place. Behind him, in the fading light, he could see that his men were in a similar condition. Rest would do them all good. However, before they could enter the village, they ran into a welcoming committee of the local militia.

They were a ragtag force of thirty, teenage boys and old men, armed with simple spears. Their leader cut a better figure, a tall, well-muscled man with his dark hair tied back at the nape of his neck. A former bodyguard or bravo, Flik decided, but not a trained soldier.

"What do you want?" their leader asked, giving them a scowl that was missing a few teeth. "We let one group of your boys through. Most of our young men already left to join your silly war. So what more can we do for you?"

Shu approached on horseback to play the diplomat. "We've received word that your village is in danger. We are here to help you defend it."

The leader spat on the ground. "Ain't seen no danger around here. Your war's a long way to the east, I reckon. As for anything else – bandits or wolves – we can handle it ourselves."

"Can you handle zombies?" Flik asked suddenly, angry at being blocked from his goal. "Can you handle the undead rising out of the ground at your feet and reaching for you with hands covered in worms? Can you handle a foe that attacks relentlessly, even with a sword in the guts or a missing arm?"

The men of the militia murmured. Some of them looked deathly afraid. Their leader snapped, "I have no time for things out of children's tales. I've traveled the world for years and never seen such things."

Flik glared. "So have I, and I have seen such things."

Shu cleared his throat. "Gentlemen, let's not argue. I am only asking that you host us for a few days, no more than ten at the most. If the threat is nothing but our fancy, then we'll soon be gone. If there really is something out there, you'll be glad of our company."

"Even ten days is a long time, out here," their leader mused. "Where will your men stay if we let you in?"

"On the village commons," Shu answered. "Your people won't have to quarter us, and we will pay for our food in potch."

Their leader snorted. "You government types are all the same. You don't even think about us except when you need something from us." He shrugged his shoulders. "It's not like we can stop you, if it came to a fight. Come in, and we'll see what your promises are good for." Flik waved his soldiers forward, ordering them to set up a camp in the village center. He watched Tengaar, Hix, and Nina go by. All of them were beat from the ride. Nina had quite a sunburn on her face. After they were past, Flik turned to catch up with Shu and the militia leader, who'd gone ahead.

"Have you sent men into the hills?" Shu was asking.

The leader was studiously ignoring Shu, but acknowledged Flik as he rode up. "The name's Ray. I know who you are, judging by your blue clothes, but who's this jerk here trying to tell me how to do my job?"

Having observed Shu for some length, Flik knew that the strategist bristled from that comment, but Shu's tone remained polite. "Your job includes taking the necessary precautions to make sure this village is safe. Part of that is sending scouts out to see about any threats."

Ray snorted. "Zombies? Listen, the most we ever see are those bandits from their fort in the mountains. Our barricade is good enough for them." He gestured to the far side of the town, where Flik could see a wooden palisade and a couple of bored guards at a gate.

"Has anybody been up into the hills lately?" Flik asked. "Has anyone disappeared recently?"

"People go up into the hills all the time. Everybody wants to try their luck at a little prospecting." Ray shrugged his shoulders. "Ain't nobody out there keeping track of them all. You could be dead for years up there and nobody would miss you."

"What a thoroughly inefficient way of doing things," Shu quipped. "All of that lost tax revenue. Things will have to change in the future."

"You should increase the guard on the gates," Flik suggested, as politely as he could.

Ray whirled around, looking up at Flik with narrowed eyes. "I know how to run my men! I've been at this job for a decade, so I know what's up in the mountains. I don't need some idiot who's been here for a quarter hour trying to tell me what to do." He turned again, stalking off into the darkness. "Zombies! Pah! Next thing you know, they'll be telling me we're under attack by Do-Re-Mi elves!"

A cool wind picked up, flowing down off the peaks. Flik thought he could detect a faint moaning sound in it. Shu sniffed at the breeze and calmly said, "I suppose I don't need to tell you how to do your job either?"

"I was thinking of doubling the normal watches," Flik offered. Shu nodded, then turned his mount towards the village commons.

The men were hungry, but also exhausted, so dinner was eaten quickly. Flik set the rotation for the sentries and was preparing to go to bed when he glanced over at the gates. Only one guard was there now. Flik shook his head in exasperation and walked over to the palisade. The wooden structure came to Flik shoulders, high enough to deter casual attacks, but not enough to stop a determined force. The watchman was a boy, maybe as old as Riou.

Flik ignored him for the moment, staring out at the mountains and forests, which gave off a faint red glare from the rising Scarlet Moon. The wind was in his face, cold enough to make him shiver for the first time in months. The gate, barred and locked, rattled slightly with the breeze. He could also hear that moan again.

The guard shuffled uneasily on his feet and asked, "What're you looking at?"

"Nothing. Is it always like this?" The guard gave a noncommittal grunt, so Flik tried a different tack. "What's your name?"

"Kokto," the youth answered. His expression suddenly became brighter. "Are you really with the State Army?"

Kokto's enthusiasm made Flik smile. "Yeah. You interested in joining?"

"I'm too young. The elders won't let me leave until next year."

Flik turned his head slightly so that Kokto wouldn't see his expression. He remembered being that age and his burning desire to get away from Warrior's Village. He almost opened his mouth to tell the boy to leave now, head out for Dunan Castle, and sign on. Then he shook his head. No, he didn't want this boy to have to cut all of his ties like he'd done. "You'll get your chance." He looked back into Kokto's bright, eager eyes. "Then, when you get back, you can hold your head up high and the girls will be all over you."

"You think?"

"Positive." Flik glanced back out over the palisade. "So, you got any buddies watching with you?"

Kokto grimaced. "They were supposed to be here, but I guess they bugged out on me. Nobody likes the night watch. Besides, nothing much ever happens."

Now it was Flik's turn to grimace. "I'll tell you what. I'll get some of my men to stand watch with you. You'd like that, right? They could stay up with you, tell you stories about the military life."

"You'd do that?"

"Sure." He turned to walk away. "I'll send a couple right up." He waved back to the boy, then went to his camp to roust out a couple of unfortunates to watch with the boy. After giving them their instructions and telling them whom to wake to replace them, Flik sought out his own tent and lay down on his cot.

He couldn't sleep. Even muffled by the canvas, he could hear the wind and that eerie moaning. He was sure it was simply a natural occurrence, but it unnerved him. Of course, the lax security unnerved him even more. He shifted carefully onto his side, searching for a comfortable position. His muscles, not having had much rest recently, complained to him. The skin on his nose was starting to peel.

The wind increased in intensity, making the canvas flap, making that incessant moaning louder. To add to that, something wooden started rapping, a constant knocking noise. Flik groaned, rolled onto his stomach and grabbed for his cape, trying to stuff it in his ears. That knocking sounded much like a gate having come loose and whacking against a fence.

A cold shiver convulsed Flik's body, blasting all thoughts of sleep out of his mind. It was a gate, the gate to the palisade, open in the wind! He started to get up, but nearly choked on his first good breath of air. It was foul, filling his mouth with the stench of rotten flesh. Flik's fingers found his sword and shield, and then he was on his feet.

"Up! Up!" Flik shouted. "We're under attack!" His legs were carrying him towards the opening of his tent. He stepped outside into the night air.

A pair of cold, bony hands wrapped around the warm flesh of his throat, squeezing the air out of his mouth. Flik could feel his pulse beating frantically against the pinpricks of sharpened nails.

He was staring into the face of the undead. Its skin was black and grimy with earth. Its nose and eyes were nothing but gaping holes. Its mouth was split in a grin of pointy yellow teeth as it tightened its grip on Flik's throat.

Flik's vision began to blur.


	73. Chapter 73 The Souls of the Dead

**Chapter 73 – The Souls of the Dead**

Choking, Flik stabbed blindly out with his sword and was rewarded with a meaty thwack as it slid into the zombie's chest. The zombie didn't flinch, but pressed harder on Flik's neck. Flik concentrated on his grip and his lightning rune, closing his eyes at the last second.

In an instant, the world glowed red behind his lids, a huge clap of noise rang in his ears, singing heat assaulted his face, and his hair stood on end. Flik's neck was suddenly free and he fell backwards, gasping and heaving for air. His eyes popped open as he hit the ground, and he was staring at the canvas top of his tent.

Ignoring the throbbing pain in his neck, Flik scrambled up to his feet. He was lightheaded, and his eyes took their time in focusing. The zombie lay on its back, smoking and unmoving. Tiny flames flickered around the opening, threatening to engulf his tent. Flik paid them little heed. He gulped down more air, then proceeded over to the zombie and, in one furious motion, chopped its head off.

Flik was suddenly aware of shouting that sounded distant. He stuck a finger in one of his ears, trying to clear his hearing. It didn't help, but he knew what the noise meant. He stepped outside to find his men were running around blindly, on the verge of panic.

"Rally!" Flik yelled. Even his own voice sounded far away in his ears. He hoped that wasn't permanent. "Form by column and company!" His neck ached; bruises were already forming on the tender flesh. He could hear his senior sergeants relaying the command. While this was happening, he quickly scanned the shadows. He couldn't see any more zombies, but that proved little.

The gate was still banging away in the night wind. Spying Rossgard, Flik waved the senior sergeant over and ordered him to take his company and secure the palisade. As Rossgard's men ran for the wall, Flik continued to look for more enemies. Light flared from the watch fires. His men were adding fuel to those fires, trying to push back the shadows. The scouts had fallen into a semblance of order, but there was nothing visible for them to fight.

Hix was standing guard in front of one tent, his hands tight around his sword, and his lips pressed together in a determined expression. When Flik walked over, his face changed to a worried look.

"Sir, Flik! Your neck, you're bleeding!"

Absently Flik reached up and felt around his throat. He winced at the pain and his fingertips came away with a light coating of blood. Now that he was aware of it, he could feel a number of small cuts around his neck. "It's nothing serious," Flik answered, projecting more confidence than he felt. He knew untreated wounds could get infected. Were wounds from zombies more prone to that? Changing the subject, he asked, "What have you seen, Hix?"

"Not much, Sir Flik." Hix peered out into the darkness. "I was sleeping outside of Tengaar's tent, like I always do, when I heard somebody scream. I stood up and everybody was running all over the place. Miss Apple and Miss Nina are also in this tent, so I decided to wait here and protect them."

Flik put his hand on Hix's shoulder. "Good job. Stay here and keep them safe for now."

He walked back to where the companies were gathered in formation and started directing his men. He sent Al's company to secure the horses, while Jerrim's and Danel's began to sweep through the tents, looking for any other zombies. As his men moved out, Ray sprinted over from one of the houses, his face completely pale.

"Some of my men, my men, they're gone! Pulled right out of their beds! What the hell happened?"

Flik worried his lower lip to keep from frowning. "A probe, maybe, or a raid, not a full-out attack. Neclord may be looking for fresh bodies for his army."

"What?" Ray started shaking. "What happened to my men?" Then he looked more fully at Flik, his eyes widening in horror. "Your neck! Are you all right?"

Flik surprised himself by how calm he was. "People who've recently died make better zombies than those who've had a chance to decompose. Young men trained in the art of fighting make the best zombies of all."

"My men, turned into-"

Ray doubled over and began retching. Flik ignored him, dabbing experimentally at his neck again. It still hurt and it was still bleeding, which was a cause for concern. He knew that neck injuries tended to bleed more than other wounds and he didn't want to lose too much blood. He also needed to get healing for any other wounded soldiers. He'd have to call for Nina and her water rune sooner or later.

He realized that he hadn't checked on Shu. If Neclord was targeting the leaders of the army sent against him, then the strategist might be in mortal peril. Leaving Ray behind to finish regurgitating dinner, Flik sprinted through the tents, gathering an escort of soldiers around him. The strategist's tent was set near the southern end of the camp, looking deceptively peaceful as Flik approached. He didn't hesitate, plunging through the opening with his sword drawn.

Shu put the book that he was reading down on the table and turned his head. "Good evening, Flik. I take it that your arrival means that you have the situation fully under control?" A pair of candles illumed Shu's tent, revealing sparse quarters. Just a cot in one corner, a table, and a folding chair. Flik stopped and gaped, while his escort milled around just outside the opening.

"Why didn't you get yourself to safety?" Flik asked. "You could've been killed sitting in here."

Shu stared into one of the candle flames. "A good strategist must always be completely honest with himself. I am no warrior, Flik, to go running through melees hoping for the best. I didn't know where the enemies were, but I knew that they had not yet discovered me in here. It seemed prudent to remain where I was, having faith that you would restore order to the situation quickly." The tips of his lips crinkled. "Which you have done admirably." He paused for a moment, contemplating. "Have you determined the source of the attack yet?"

Flik shook his head. "I had some men up at the gate, but they didn't cry out. I'm still not sure how the zombies got in."

Shu rose from his chair. "I have an idea. Would you walk with me, Flik? Make sure your escort tags along, though I hope we won't need them."

The strategist walked out into the night, Flik following. He gestured to his men to form a protective screen. Shu walked purposefully, heading towards the northeast part of the town. They were well away from the camp now, with only the light coming from the two moons to aid them. The houses were shadowy bulks, and Flik worried over every dark alley that they passed.

Eventually Shu's course led them to the town shrine. Flik recognized it as dedicated to the True Earth Rune, loved by farmers everywhere. Carefully they walked around to the back, where there was a graveyard. Shu clicked his tongue and said, "Just as I feared it would be."

Even with the limited light, Flik could see that the earth was churned up. Many of the gravestones were flat on the ground or resting at random angles. Gaping holes were open to the night air. "This is where the attack originated," Shu reasoned. "No one would suspect an attack from inside the walls. Your men at the gate never had a chance."

"Damn Neclord!" Flik shouted. "Damn him!" By now, those guards were probably zombies themselves. Kokto too. He felt guilty that he hadn't sent the boy to bed. He shook his head. No, the fault was not his. Anybody standing guard there would've been taken. The fault was with Neclord. "We'll make him pay," Flik swore.

"In good time," Shu replied. "For now, you should see to that wound. You might also find the militia leader and get him to search the town. The locals won't appreciate it if your men start barging into their houses unannounced."

As always, Shu's words made sense. They trudged back to the camp, where Flik sent a messenger find Ray. Then he walked over to Nina's tent and asked Hix to send her out. Nina emerged, gasped, and said, "What happened, Sir Flik? You're bleeding terribly! Let me look at you!" She threw herself at him, pulled him down by the shoulders, and placed her hands on the sides of his neck. Flik tried to recoil from the unexpected pain of his bruises, but Nina, showing surprising strength, managed to keep his head down. Moments later, soothing coolness spread out from her hands, easing all of his discomfort away.

Meanwhile, Tengaar, Hix, and Apple had also come out from the tent. Apple walked over to Shu and began to lecture him. "Why didn't you seek shelter, Shu? You could've been killed."

"I figured it was safer to remain where I was," Shu calmly answered.

"But you were all alone. What would you have done if a zombie had attacked?"

Shu clasped his hands behind his back. "I would have rolled out under the nearest patch of canvas and run for my life, I suppose."

Nina had finished with Flik. She let him straighten up and smiled. "All better, Sir Flik."

Even though he knew she was correct, Flik reached up to ascertain for himself that his neck was repaired. His hand came away clean, the touch was painless. He was about to thank her when shouting erupted from a tent twenty yards to the right. Six of his soldiers boiled out, all in a state of panic. They were followed by a zombie. It was the corpse of an old lady who had died relatively recently, judging by the fact that her clothes were intact and that she had stringy white hair on her wrinkled head.

She latched on to the slowest of Flik's men, biting and scratching him. The soldier responded by clubbing her shoulder with the pommel of his sword. Flik heard the crunching of bones, but that didn't deter the zombie, who turned her head up and bit heavily into the soldier's cheek. The soldier screamed hysterically and dropped his blade. Several of his comrades aimed thrusts at the zombie's torso. None of those strikes had any effect.

"No! No!" Flik shouted. "You can't fight it like a normal person. You've got to go for the head." He brought his own sword up and drove it in through the zombie's ear and, with splintering noises, out through the other. The zombie stopped clawing at Flik's man, her arms and legs going limp, but her jaws remained firmly closed on his cheek.

"I need some of you guys to help me pry her off," Flik commanded.

His men hung back, disgusted looks on their faces. "You can't be serious, captain. She's, I mean she's, I mean…yuck."

Flik sighed in exasperation, but his eyes found one of the veterans. "It's no different than handling any other corpse. Just think of it that way." The veteran edged forward, reaching out gingerly, as if the corpse might turn and bite his fingers off. It didn't, and his hand closed around dead flesh. Together, he and Flik tugged on the corpse until, with a tearing sound, it came free from the soldier it had grappled with. Its jaws were still closed around a chunk of bloody flesh. Its victim fell to the ground, screaming in high wails, pressing his hands to his cheek.

"Nina, we need you over here!" Flik yelled. He pulled his sword out of the corpse's skull and brought it down on its neck. Only when the zombie was safe was he able to look on it again as a human being. The old woman had been someone's daughter, wife, mother, and grandmother. Flik's hand tightened harder on the grip.

Nina paled a bit as she saw the blood welling up between the fallen soldier's fingers, but she knelt down to try and work on him. Meanwhile, Ray finally arrived, looking even more shaken when he saw the situation.

"Ray, are your men organized for duty?" Flik asked, ignoring the militia captain's unease.

"For what?"

"For duty. I need them to help us go house to house and explain things to the locals."

Ray's face was absolutely white. "House to house?"

Flik tried hard to keep a pleasant smile on his face. There was more commotion in the distance. Some of Flik's men looked up from their duties. Ray's face started to turn in the direction of the noise, but the disturbance stopped as quickly as it started. Nina finished applying gauze to the face of her patient, then stood up and started heading in that direction. Flik motioned a couple of his men after her as an escort.

"Yes, Ray. House to house. We've got to make sure that all of the zombies are cleared out of here before they kill anyone else. Also so they can't open the gates to let in any from the outside."

Ray swallowed. "I'll…uh…get my men ready."

"Why don't you do that?"

Flik didn't get much sleep that night. The militiamen were as skittish as their leader, requiring Flik's soldiers to back them up before they went to search the houses. The citizens of the village were not happy about the situation. They weren't happy that there had been an attack and they weren't happy that they had to be rousted out of their homes so that the soldiers could search them. Flik found himself receiving numerous reproachful stares. He tried his best to ignore them.

For a while, the searching was uneventful. Flik had to stifle some yawns as each house turned up clean. Then the screaming began. A group of militiamen burst out the front door of a house near the graveyard, gibbering about everyone being dead inside. Flik gathered his own men and went in to confirm the situation. It was eerily quiet, so much so that Flik jumped when one of his men cried out in dismay.

The noise drew him to one of the bedroom, where the children had shared a bed. All of them were dead, strangled in their sleep. Another room had the corpse of an old lady. Her throat had been gouged out, leaving a bloody mess. Her face was frozen in terror and a meat cleaver was still in her hand. There were no more bodies, though there was room enough for several more adults. Flik knew what that meant; more unwilling soldiers drafted into Neclord's zombie army.

All of the houses adjacent to the graveyard were in a similar condition. As the morning light filled the sky in the east, Flik had a new order for his men – collect firewood. Shortly, all of the dispatched zombies were burning, sending a thin trail of black smoke up into the cloudless sky. Meanwhile, the soldiers were gathering the bodies of their fallen comrades and the dead civilians in preparation for a larger pyre.

Before this was complete, Flik was confronted by a delegation of very angry villagers.

"What are you planning to do with the bodies of our sons and daughters?" an elderly man asked, his voice rising. He eyed the burning zombies with a mixture of suspicion and fear.

Flik rubbed his eyes. He was tired and wanted to finish what needed to be done in a hurry. "We'll burn them. That way, none of them can be revived as zombies."

This provoked both gasps and shouts of outrage. "Ridiculous!" the elderly man answered. "Our children must be returned to the arms of Mother Earth. If you burn them, they'll spend eternity suffering in the Hell of the Fire Rune!"

"I don't have time for this," Flik muttered. "Look, if the bodies aren't burned, they'll make perfect targets for Neclord the vampire. Do you want a repeat of what happened last night?"

"The Earth Rune will protect the souls of the dead!" the elderly man shouted.

"Yeah? How well did the Earth Rune protect your dead last night?" Flik shouted in return. "Have you seen the ruin of your graveyard?"

He regretted those words instantly. The elderly man's countenance crumpled, his eyes dropping to the ground. "Why? Why didn't the Earth Rune protect us?"

"I don't know." If the True Runes were all-powerful, why did they permit this sort of violation of the dead? Flik's memory turned back to the Star Dragon Sword, how the Night Rune had scoffed at the idea of being the protector of humanity. His thoughts went even further back, remembering Luc's assertion that the True Runes cared nothing for the suffering of people. Looking at the dead, so horrifically murdered, it was hard for him not to blame the True Runes for failing on the job.

He shook his head. "It's not the fault of the Earth Rune," Flik said. "The one who is at fault is the one who orchestrated this attack. It is Neclord who attacked you and violated the will of the True Runes."

"I see." The elderly man looked up at Flik, his eyes filled with an intense anger. "And you say that the New State Army is here to get rid of this Neclord menace?" His voice became excited. "We'll support you, no matter what it takes! Go up there and rip that monster to shreds!"

Flik nodded. "That's what I intend to do, as soon as we take care of last night's victims."

"No! If you burn them, they'll suffer in Hell for all eternity!"

Flik slapped his forehead. "It doesn't matter. Nobody's going to suffer because we cremated the bodies!"

Shu, who'd been listening in on the conversation, suddenly stepped forward. "What if we dug a deep pit and burned the bodies there? Then we could pour earth over the ashes. That would solve everything, wouldn't it?" He smiled diplomatically. Flik grimaced. The suggestion would mean more work for his tired soldiers.

"I suppose that would be all right," the elderly man said. "But could you try to make sure that none of the ashes escape?"

"We'll do our best," Shu answered. Flik's hand twitched.

The remainder of the day was spent digging. Flik had his men work in shifts, even taking a shovel himself. By the time the hole was finished and the bodies placed in, he had a developing blister on his left palm. The village elder spoke a brief eulogy, mostly exhorting Flik and his men to defeat Neclord, and then the pyre was lit. Thanks to Shu's instruction, the pit had been designed with a proper airflow, so the fire burned strongly.

The fire continued burning into the night. Flik decided that each company would take a turn at the watch this night. He made sure that both the graveyard and the palisade had extra men. He knew Neclord was unlikely to use the same tactic two nights in a row, but he felt it better to be thorough.

The extra precautions weren't necessary, and the night passed uneventfully. The fire burned itself down to a single wisp of smoke by the morning. As Flik's men were breaking out the shovels to fill the hole, a single Winger glided in out of the mountains. Flik watched as Shu and Apple walked over to hear the news, then focused on the work again.

Apple suddenly gasped. "Riou is missing?"

Flik's back snapped straight. Heads were turning all over the camp. Shu's brow furrowed. "We should discuss this in a more private setting. Flik, you come too." Flik jogged after the two strategists as they disappeared inside Shu's tent.

When Flik entered, Shu was already sitting down, bending over a map. Apple stood at his side, on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry, Shu. I didn't mean to blurt it out. It's just that-"

Shu waved one hand. "Now is not the time for apologies, Apple." He looked up to greet Flik. "I surmise that you understand Riou is missing?"

Flik's heart lurched. "I heard it." Apple flinched.

"It seems that while we were working yesterday, Neclord launched an attack on Tinto City. The soldiers that were gathered there advanced out to fight and put the zombies to rout. Unfortunately, that was merely a diversion. Another force captured the city while the soldiers were occupied." Shu went back to staring at the map.

"And Riou?" Flik prompted.

"His whereabouts are unknown," the strategist answered. "He was apparently in the city when it was attacked. Klaus attempted a counterattack when he heard the news." Shu put his hands behind his back. "It did not succeed. Lord Ridley was grievously injured in the fighting and Klaus had to pull the men back."

Questions buzzed in Flik's head. "What about Viktor, is he all right?" Flik knew the question was selfish, but he had to know of his friend's condition.

There was just a touch of a smile on Shu's face. "It was Viktor who spoke to our messengers. He is fine, Flik."

Flik nearly wiped his forehead in relief. "Okay, what about Ridley, will he live? What are we going to do?"

"I do not know whether Lord Ridley will live, only that he was alive when this message was sent." Shu answered. "As for the other-" he looked up from the map "-we have no choice. We must advance to their aid immediately. I will not allow all of our work to be undone by a monster!"

Marching up a narrow mountain pass would not be fun, especially if it was held against him. Still, the decision was an easy one. "My men will be ready to move in a quarter-hour. We'll leave everything unnecessary behind."

"See to it," Shu replied.

Fifteen minutes later, the scouts were mounted and ready to go. On their faces was a mixture of determination and fear. One defeat could be weathered, but the loss of Riou would put everything at risk. The villagers and militiamen regarded them sullenly, both because the grave wasn't complete and because they, too, had heard the news. The encampment still stood in the middle of the town. Those tents would take too long to pull down.

At a walk, Flik led his men out of the palisade, heading along a corduroy road that rose up into the forests and mountains. The pace had to be slow, for the log surface was difficult for the horses to navigate. Though he sent out scouts, flankers, and a rearguard, Flik kept nervously scanning his surroundings. Vultures were circling lazily overhead, drifting back and forth as the air currents carried them. Something ahead was drawing their attention, but the scouts had not yet discovered what it was.

He learned shortly. One of the scouts came riding in from ahead and said, "There's a group of armed men, maybe mercenaries, directly in front of us. They're not making any effort to hide. Also, it looks like they've taken care of a group of zombies."

Flik thought for a moment. "I'm coming with you. Do we have anything that'll do for a flag of truce? I'd like to speak with their leader and find out who they are, then thank them for helping us."

The trail flattened out, leading to a narrow space one hundred yards ahead where the trees grew close along the road. This was where the newcomers were. They appeared to be no more than a hundred men, though there might be more in the trees. They were gathering up the corpses of zombies, preparing, as Flik had done, to make a pyre of them.

Their leader, a man in a brown cape, turned to face Flik and waved. Flik took this as a sign of the man's good nature and rode forward to meet him. Up close, Flik could see that the leader was somewhat older than he was. His face had a weathered look, with pronounced cheekbones. On the other hand, his hair was perfectly black, without a single visible strand of gray. His thick eyebrows gave him a fierce gaze. This was partially dispelled when he smiled.

"Looks like we saved you a fair bit of trouble," the leader said. "Nothing like ambushing the ambushers." His hand patted the straight sword resting against his dark pants.

Flik got down from his horse and found himself looking up at the stranger's face. "Thank you. You've undoubtedly suffered many casualties in our place."

The leader shrugged. "It's not a problem. Tinto is paying us to patrol these mountains. Besides, now I can tell everyone I've had the honor of rescuing Flik of the Blue Lightning." He laughed, smiling broadly.

Flik couldn't help but laugh too. "Okay, so you know who I am, but I don't know the name of the man who rescued me."

The stranger's smile slipped away, his face becoming all seriousness. He turned his head slightly, staring away to the south. A blast of cool air came down from the nearest peak, tugging at both of their capes, allowing Flik to see the stranger's gray tunic. "From one swordsman to another, you can tell them that it was Georg Prime who helped you this day."


	74. Chapter 74 Useless Arguments

**Chapter 74 – Useless Arguments**

Most of the people who'd lived in Toran over the past fifteen years had heard the title "Deathblow Georg" at some point in their lives. Flik now found himself face to face with the fearsome swordsman who'd been a general under Barbarossa Rugner during the Scarlet Moon Empire's Succession War. He'd left the Empire after that war, wandered the world, and, according to rumor, ended up serving the Queen of Falena. By that point he'd become famous, but it was his stay in the south that made him infamous.

Just as when he'd served the Empire, his time in the Queendom was marked by political instability, followed by civil war. Flik had heard dozens of accounts of the action, all of them different, and none of them were verifiable. All of the accounts agreed on one point – Georg Prime had assassinated the Queen of Falena. There were various reasons given. One had him acting on behalf of the Prince, trying to set him up as the new king. Others placed him in the employ of one of the senatorial factions. Flik had even heard one story that suggested the Queen had been insane, and Georg Prime had killed her in an attempt to save the country.

There was no sifting the truth from any of those rumors. However, one thing was certain. Flik was staring at the face of one of the most dangerous men he'd ever heard of, that this man was expecting a reply, and that his mouth was starting to frown.

"Thanks again for saving us," Flik blurted.

Georg nodded slightly, the smile returning to his lips. "Of course." He looked beyond Flik and said, "It seems one of your companions is approaching. I don't think he's happy."

"Why has this column stopped moving?" Shu demanded, riding up on a brown pony. "I heard something about an ambush and I rushed forward, thinking you might need me, only to find that nothing's going on."

"Strategist," Georg remarked, smiling more broadly. "I know the type. A strategist is never happy unless the wheels are turning and the plots are moving closer to completion. One thing I know from first hand experience; if a strategist takes an interest in you personally, you can expect to lose a lot of sleep." He turned his head and shouted back over his shoulder, "Okay, boys, get this cleared up so that our guests can move along!"

Shu glared at Georg. "Who are you? You seem to have some experience with my kind."

In the interim, Flik had moved beyond his initial alarm of Georg to a sense of pride that the famous warrior knew who he was. He was more than happy to answer Shu's question. "This is 'Deathblow Georg.' I don't know what he's doing leading mercenaries in this backwater place, but he's probably best swordsman in the whole world."

Georg tried to wave the praise off. "I was trying to enjoy a little anonymity. As for the name, you can call me Georg, thank you. Even I don't know how that stupid nickname got started."

"Georg Prime, a man bound up in history, for good or ill," Shu mused. "What has brought you to this country, I wonder?"

"I am who I am, no more," Georg replied, framing the statement as a challenge. "And what about you, strategist, are you from Soledt or the Silverbergs?"

Flik stood back and watched the two men continue their battle of words. Apple, having come up with Shu, stood next to Flik and frowned. "I might throw your words back at you," Shu responded, meeting Georg's gaze. "Still, sometimes one most give ground to gain it. I studied for a time under Mathiu Silverberg, a name that you certainly recognize."

"I remember him," Georg answered, once again looking off to the south. "He was a difficult man, hard on his subordinates, but hardest on himself."

"He had the intellect to change the world, but lacked the bravery to make the hard choices," Shu spoke, his face settling into an unconscious frown.

Georg smiled, but his tone was cool. "Tell me, what hard choices have you had to make, strategist? I doubt that they are anything like what Mathiu Silverberg wrestled with." When Shu frowned, Georg laughed. "I see that I'm not going to convince you. Instead, let's try a different subject. Three days ago, I watched one of your armies marching through this pass. Now I find another one, moving in all haste. What has happened that I don't know about?"

"Tinto has fallen to the zombies and our leader, Riou, is missing," Flik answered. He felt time slipping by. Since they'd set out, the sun had moved noticeably higher. The trees' shadows were becoming shorter. He glanced towards Shu. "I think we should move on."

Georg put out a hand to hold their attention. "Wait, I would like to join you. I've heard much about Riou and I want to see his mettle for myself."

Soon, both Flik's men and Georg's mercenaries were underway again, leaving only the burning zombies behind them. The road continued rise through the hills and forests for several more miles, finally cresting with a spectacular view of the surroundings. Flik gaped at how heavily worked the Tinto side of the border was. The lush forests ended abruptly and the mountainsides had been carved into giant terraces. There was nothing green to be seen for miles.

"What is this?" Tengaar asked, horrified. Hix looked equally amazed. Even Flik, who'd seen many countries in his lifetime, had never seen anything like this.

"Surface mining," Shu explained. "This land is rich in minerals, especially water gems, which are vital to the summoning and transfer of runes. Tinto makes most of its potch by exporting those gems to its neighbors, particularly Harmonia."

"But they're ruining the land," Tengaar protested. "There are no forests, no crops, no streams. How do they live like this?"

"They get paid," Shu replied. "If a man has no land to farm, has no desire to fight, and has no education to be a clerk or artisan, what does that leave? More importantly, think about how our lives would be different if we didn't have water gems to contain our runes. How many more soldiers would be dead if not for water runes? How many times has Flik's lightning rune saved his life?" Flik's neck involuntarily clenched. "Are you prepared to give that up for the sake of some trees?"

Tengaar glowered at Shu. "Trees are important too! Everything looks ugly without them."

"I agree," Nina added. Tengaar momentarily looked at Nina in surprise, then smiled at her unexpected ally. Then she shifted her glare to Hix.

"Um, I guess you're right," Hix said.

"This conversation is going nowhere," Shu concluded. "Is there anyone else who wants to offer his opinion on the foliage?" Flik rubbed at his neck. "Good. We don't have any time to waste if we want to reach Tigermouth by nightfall." He kicked his pony into motion down the trail.

Georg's men were closing up from behind. He topped the rise, frowned, and commented, "Ugliest place I've seen in a while. It's hard to believe people would do this to themselves willingly." He paused, registering the two girls looking at him adoringly. "Is there something I can help you with, ladies?"

"Now there is a real warrior," Tengaar said breathlessly. She shook her head and turned on Hix. "Are you taking notes, Hix? That's how a man is supposed to be!"

"I'm sorry I ever thought of you as 'withered up'!" Nina put a hand to her forehead.

Georg cleared his throat. "I was just expressing my opinion, that's all. I'm glad you thought so highly of it." He turned his horse and walked down the path.

"See, Hix, that is the bearing of a true warrior," Tengaar continued. "Look at how noble his posture is, and try to copy that. For goodness sake, at least don't slouch so much!"

Nina was still staring off after Georg. Flik covered a laugh with his hand and muttered, "Well, if I were interested in her, now I know how to get on her good side."

Flik started riding again, heading down slope into the afternoon sun. He shielded his eyes from the glare, trying to make out the terrain ahead. The valley below wasn't very broad, but it extended for miles off to the northwest, all of it barren like the mountainsides. The trail twisted and turned, following the contours of the land. However, from this altitude, Flik could make out the distant walls of their destination, some five hundred feet below.

The day had been pleasantly mild with the sun up, but as both it and the travelers got lower, the chilly wind returned. Flik found it unpleasant. Here it was, still summer, and he was shivering. The wind shifted, blowing from due west, bringing with it a slight smoky smell. He tried to locate Tigermouth again, but as he was lower now, he could not find a good view. He rode to the head of the column and picked up the pace.

Finally the path straightened out and Flik could see the walls of Tigermouth, a half mile distant. As he feared, this was the source of the smoke. He could see black clouds of it billowing up as the sun sank behind the western mountains. He sent men ahead to scout out the situation, then tried to remain calm as the minutes ticked off. Shu and Apple were riding alongside him, both apparently unruffled.

The scouts grew distant in the evening light, though Flik was able to keep them in sight. They rode directly up to the walls and seemed to speak with someone there. As they returned, Flik noted that there was one extra man. When they approached and he could see them more clearly, his spirits rose.

"Viktor!" Flik shouted. "You're all right."

Viktor laughed and then the two friends were reunited again. Viktor's hair was messed up, and one of his arms sported a bruise, but other than that he was in good shape. "It was a little rough there, when Tinto fell, but it'll take more than a zombie to do me in. We heard from the Wingers that your men were in Drakemouth, but I didn't expect you to come over the mountains. You want in on some zombie action?"

Shu cleared his throat. "Your high spirits suggest that Lord Riou's condition is satisfactory."

"So, you got that message." Viktor blushed a little. "Yeah, that must be why you're here."

"And?" Flik asked, feeling a touch of impatience.

"Things were a little…bad when I gave that message to the Wingers. I'd just managed to get to the town of Crom with the army, plus Ridley and Klaus. Nanami carried Riou in about an hour after I sent that message off." Viktor scratched the back of his neck.

"Carried?" Apple prompted, frowning.

"Seems they ran into Neclord personally," Viktor explained. "Riou beat the bastard off with his Rune, but collapsed as the zombies were entering the city. He'll be all right; he was sleeping soundly when I left him earlier today."

"Nanami carried him all the way from Tinto to Crom?" Flik wondered. He tried to work the distances out in his head, having only seen the area on a map. "She's a tough kid."

"That resolves the situation with Riou," Shu said. "What of Ridley? You must have some reason for being in Tigermouth."

"Ridley's wounded pretty badly. We found someone with a water rune to stabilize him, but-" Viktor shook his head "-who knows? We're hoping that Riou will be able to help when he wakes up." Viktor glanced back at the town. "As for why I'm here, let's get back inside the walls first, then I'll tell you. The sun's going down and I've got an important date that I don't want to miss." He turned his horse and started riding back the way he came.

Flik hurried after him. "You've got a what?" he asked.

"I'm meeting someone here," Viktor replied casually. "Actually, Kahn's the one who knows this person. I'm just along to provide security."

The name "Kahn" was familiar to Flik, and he spent a couple of minutes searching his memories, trying to pin it down. It was Shu who supplied the answer, continuing the conversation with Viktor. "You speak of Kahn Marley, the famous vampire hunter."

"Yeah, we worked together to chase Neclord out of North Window. Like us, he's been following rumors of zombies."

They passed through the walls of Tigermouth, into the gloom of the town. The first thing Flik noted was the remains of several pyres. Behind him, Nina gagged from the stench. "It looks like the zombies hit here, too," Flik commented.

"The damn things are everywhere," Viktor replied. Then his eyebrows quirked. "Sounds like you've had some trouble too."

"There were a couple our first night in Drakemouth," Flik answered. "Neclord tried to ambush us by raising the town's dead against us." He decided against mentioning his personal encounter with a zombie.

Even in the evening light, Flik recognized Kahn Marley when he saw him. The heavy brown coat and brown beret were unmistakable. Last time, the vampire hunter had been sweating profusely in that outfit. Now, Flik shivered and envied him. Kahn was staring intently at a building directly ahead, but turned as Viktor approached.

"You've made it back in time, and it seems you've brought an entourage with you." He pushed the floppy part of his beret out of the way. "Try to keep the noise down, though. I've heard that she can be irritable just after waking up."

"Irritable? Who exactly is she?" Flik asked.

It was the Star Dragon Sword who answered. "Sierra Mikain, the Mistress of all vampires." Flik was surprised at how upset the sword sounded as he continued, "She is a creature who should not be trusted."

"We've been over this already, sword," Kahn declared. "We will need her power when we confront Neclord."

"You have no comprehension of what you are saying, mortal!" The sword rattled in the scabbard on Viktor's back. "With her Rune returned to her, she would make Neclord look like a kitten. She is a veritable lioness and she feeds off of men's souls."

"You say such terrible things about me," a commanding female voice responded. Flik nearly jumped off his horse. He could see Viktor, Tengaar, and Nina all looking around.

"Beware!" the Star Dragon Sword boomed. "Beware! She comes!"

"Shut up," Kahn seethed. "We're trying to make a good first impression."

Something white glided through the air overhead. "The sword and I will never be friends, I suppose. It probably has something to do with our temperaments." Her voice sounded mellow, relaxed.

"A white bat!" Nina exclaimed, pointing out past Kahn.

"Temptress!" the sword continued. "Seductress! You lure men with your promises and twist them into foul monsters."

The bat circled overhead again, lower this time, making a smaller circle. For the first time, she sounded perturbed. "I do no such thing. Don't you know the rules of my kind? I make no pact with man without first being invited. Anyone who comes to me comes of their own free will."

"We need you, o Mistress of the vampires," Kahn said, trying to catch sight of her. "Your son Neclord curses this land, perverting the Rune that you once protected."

The white bat suddenly swooped out of the sky, buzzed past Kahn's head, and landed gracefully a couple of yards in front of him. "Don't call that idiot my son!" the bat demanded. Suddenly, her form started to change, rapidly rising into the form of a young woman with pale skin, long white hair gathered by a blue hairpiece, and red eyes. She was wearing a white dress that didn't reach her knees and a blue mantle that hung around her shoulders, chest, and arms.

Flik's mouth dried out. He heard Georg distinctly mutter, "I've never seen anything like that."

Sierra coolly appraised the people before her. "I never did like crowds, and here I see a whole army. Why don't we go back to the inn to discuss things in more detail." She pointed to Kahn. "You, you summoned me." She pointed to Viktor. "You, bring that sword of yours, as insufferable as he is, and I'll talk some sense into him." She paused for a moment and then pointed to Flik. "And you. If I have to wake up from my beauty nap, I might as well have some good-looking company for a change."

"Wait, why do you need me?" Fear spiked in Flik. He didn't want to be some bargaining chip where this unearthly woman was involved.

Kahn turned back, studying Flik intently. "You, yes, I remember you. We met on the road south of North Window. Damn, but that was a hot day. Come on, Flik. Sierra says she wants you present, and what Sierra wants, she gets."

"She is a foul deceiver in a fair form!" the sword bellowed. "Enter into there and none of you will return with your souls intact."

Sierra, standing by the doorway, looked over her shoulder. "You can stop that at any time, Rune of the Night. These men need me. They know it, I know it, and you know it."

The Star Dragon Sword rattled in indignation. "Fine, but I'm going to have some vampire to slay at the end of this, mark my words."

Once inside the inn and sequestered in a private dining room, Sierra's tone became businesslike. "You have both the Night Rune and the expertise of generations of knowledge, so at least you are no group of amateurs." Her gaze shifted from Kahn, who had taken off his beret to reveal blond hair, to Viktor and then Flik. "Still, I don't see why this expedition to kill Neclord will be any more successful than the previous ones. Strike his physical body down and his spirit will escape to one of the doppelgangers he's created over the years. I've spent centuries tracking him and only managed to dispatch a couple dozen of his spares."

"A couple dozen?" Viktor shouted, his eyes wide. Flik had to work at keeping his own mouth from falling open. In this light, her face looked very young. Her skin was smooth, without any wrinkles or blemishes. It was hard to imagine that she'd lived and fought for centuries.

Sierra smirked and took a sip of tea. "He's very thorough."

"I believe that I have an answer," Kahn replied. He reached inside his coat and slowly withdrew an orb large enough to encompass his whole hand, from wrist to fingertips. It was a water gem, filled with a clear liquid. He placed it on the table and said, "A rune of binding, the result of generations of Marley research. With it, we can tie Neclord to a place, body and soul. If we kill his body while he's bound, his soul will be unable to escape." Kahn looked first to Sierra and then to Viktor. "He will die."

Viktor clapped his hands together. "Perfect. I can't wait to send that bastard to hell!"

Sierra pushed out her lower lip as she regarded the water gem. "Your research has come at the expense of many of my children."

Kahn's expression was carefully neutral. "It has been my family's calling for centuries. Despite that, I'm willing to work with you, because Neclord is the far greater threat. If you think about it, I'm sure you'll see the benefits of cooperation."

"Your little toy is mildly amusing." One corner of Sierra's mouth curled up into something like a smile. "Yet you know that Neclord has a True Rune. It would be a simple thing for him to shatter any binding."

Kahn coughed, bringing his hand up to cover his frown. "Yes, that was where we hoped you could help us. Neclord stole the Blue Moon Rune from you. We're hoping that the Rune hasn't accepted him, that it might still listen to your commands. If you could somehow neutralize it, then the binding would hold."

"And we could smash him to hell!" Viktor concluded.

Sierra cocked her head to one side, playing her fingers across her lips. "If I were to join this endeavor, first I would have to…extract a promise from each of you." She straightened out and smiled fully, for the first time revealing her teeth, including a pair of sharp, white fangs.

Flik tried not to flinch away, but ended up gazing at the wall over Kahn's head. The other two men paled noticeably. The Star Dragon Sword rattled on Viktor's back. "Beware! Beware!"

Kahn held up a hand, steeling himself visibly. "What do you wish of us, Mistress Sierra?"

Sierra let her teeth disappear back behind her lips. "When I get my Rune back, my children will no longer be driven by the need to feed upon the blood of humans. There shall no longer be any need for your profession, Kahn Marley. If you will have my consent, you must promise to destroy your family's research and not to pass on your vocation to your children."

"Neclord killed my grandfather, then killed my father right in front of me." Kahn's eyes narrowed as he met Sierra's gaze. "I've made it my life's mission to destroy him and I will not shy away from that now. I agree to your terms."

Sierra ran the tip of her tongue over her upper lip and turned her attention to Viktor. "What about you, Night Rune? When my Rune is returned, will you promise not to hunt my children?"

"Your control over your 'creations' was never perfect," the sword retorted. "It is my job to bring order to the desires of darkness. There are laws that must never be transgressed, and I will see to it that they are enforced!"

"Such harsh words." Sierra frowned and took another sip from her cup. "It was a True Rune that made me what I am. It is that Rune which is both the source and fulfiller of my desire."

"The Blue Moon Rune does not make you violate the law and drink upon the life of others to extend your own. It is your own choice to do such things."

"I have watched my children, my friends die because the Blue Moon Rune was stolen from us." She shook her head fiercely. "I don't condone taking blood from others by force, but I do understand it. A man dying of thirst will violate any law to get a drink."

Viktor suddenly stood up, pulling the Star Dragon Sword out of its scabbard. "This arguing is going nowhere! Look, since I'm the one that wields this hunk of junk, I'll make a compromise. I promise not to hunt any vampire that leaves humanity alone." He stared at Sierra. "Is that okay?"

"That is acceptable." Sierra closed her eyes, a small smile back on her face. "I suppose I shall have to watch my children more closely now."

"How dare you make promises for me!" the Star Dragon Sword shouted. "I'm not bound by anything you say! What are you doing?"

Viktor calmly placed the black sword on the table. "If that's the case, then I can have nothing more to do with you. Is that what you want? I know how badly you want to kill Neclord. You can't hide it from me; I can feel your desire radiating through your cold metal. You want him dead nearly as much as I do."

"Viktor, we need the Star Dragon Sword for our plan," Kahn admonished.

The sword made a noise like the huffing out of air, though nothing stirred over the blade. "Fine. As Neclord is the cause of all of our troubles, I'll put up with this promise to see him eliminated."

"You always were a hard one to convince," Sierra replied. Then she giggled. "But you've become even more inflexible since taking up your metal form."

Flik stared at the blade. Both Kahn and Viktor were doing the same. "What does she mean by that?" Viktor asked. "Haven't you always been a sword?"

"No comment."

Viktor picked the sword up and sheathed it. "Well, since we're all in agreement, I think it's time for me to hit the hay."

"Wait, there is one more thing that I desire," Sierra said.

Kahn stopped in the middle of putting his beret back on and frowned. "What is it, Mistress Sierra?"

She turned to face Flik, who suddenly wished that he were somewhere else, anywhere else. "I'm feeling a bit tired," she declared. "If I'm going to help you with Neclord, I need a little something…to perk me up."

The innkeeper appeared at Flik's side, placing a small bowl and thin knife in front of him. "You want me to do what?" Flik asked, eyes flying around the room, looking for support.

Viktor shrugged. "We've all got to make sacrifices. I've got to put up with that stupid sword."

Kahn met Flik's eyes. "Give her what she wants, Flik."

The innkeeper, a man with much gray in his hair, smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, we have a trained water mage on staff."

Half an hour later, Flik tromped back through the cool darkness, searching for Shu's tent, trying to ignore his dizziness. His right wrist still throbbed, despite the bandages and ministrations of the water mage. He located his destination and walked in to find Shu in the midst of a friendly argument with Georg Prime.

"Your analysis is incorrect," the swordsman was saying. "Empress Corselia's decision to dissolve the Kooluk Empire was the correct one."

"She was weak willed," Shu countered. "The Empire brought wealth and stability, not to mention learning, to an area much greater than its physical boundaries. Trade revenues declined in the Island Nations, Scarlet Moon, Falena, and even Harmonia after the Empire disappeared. Furthermore, much of our modern rune-work is based on theoretical research conducted in Kooluk. An emperor with a stronger personality could've held it together."

Georg shook his head. "You see, this is where you and I differ. Corselia was strong-willed because she was wise enough to let the Empire die. Men think they are strong when they are stubborn, when they shed blood to try and mold the world. True wisdom, and true strength, are found when you acknowledge your own weakness and accept that the world will not turn out as you desire it." He looked up at Flik standing at the entrance to the tent. "Ah, your captain has returned."

"What news, Flik?" Shu asked.

"Sierra has agreed to help us." Flik felt his right arm twinge. "We're heading for Crom tomorrow morning." He stared at Shu, gathering his courage. "I'm going with them."

Shu smiled. "Of course you are, Flik. There are times when I know better than to stop you. Our forces will stay here and coordinate with Klaus. I wish you good fortune."

Flik wiped his brow. "Thank you, Shu. I've had about as many useless arguments as I can stand for one day."

He backed out of the tent, but lingered just long enough to hear Georg say, "Now I see why you were hanging back when the lady vampire appeared."

Shu's answer was calm. "I've read enough to know not to get caught up in certain things. That's all."


	75. Chapter 75 Walking Into a Tomb

**Chapter 75 – Walking Into a Tomb**

The following morning Flik rode off with Viktor and Kahn, heading north for Crom. Sierra took to the air as a white bat and was quickly lost to sight against an overcast sky. He left Nina, Tengaar, and Hix behind in Drakemouth, having decided that a smaller group would evade notice. Even so, Flik worried about an ambush and kept glancing at the surrounding hills. Despite his fears, the trip was uneventful. They followed a well-defined road that led them to the town by the middle of the afternoon.

Crom had been a modest town situated on the Lana River, where the exports of Tinto were placed on barges heading for Dunan Lake and points beyond. In return, food flowed back up the river, purchased by agents of the government. The current crisis had made the town's population swell dramatically. Well before Flik got to the walls, he could see thousands of tents and small huts lining the riverbank. The soldiers of the New State Army, plus Tinto's own forces, were working furiously to build a set of outer walls to encompass this new growth.

As Flik was looking at this, he was suddenly shoved forward from behind. Glancing back, he saw that he was now sharing his saddle with Sierra, who was dangling her legs over the edge. She smiled at him and said, "It wouldn't be prudent for me to change where lots of people can see me. You humans tend to get violent when surprised."

"Why'd you decided to ride with me?" Flik complained.

Sierra didn't answer. Riding down into the refugee camp, Flik was surprised at how orderly it was. The camp was laid out in long blocks with well-guarded food depots. The people that he saw were weary and afraid, but not destitute, at least not yet.

They were stopped at the city wall by a mixed force of soldiers from Tinto and the State Army. A guard from Tinto glared at them and asked, "What business do you have here?"

A New State officer immediately challenged him. "That's Commander Viktor, and there's Commander Flik too." The officer turned to address Flik. "I had not heard you'd be here, sir, but it gives me confidence to see you now."

Viktor cocked his head in Flik's direction. "Why are you more popular than I am, even in my own country?"

The Tinto guard sighed. "It's not proper procedure to let people in who don't have proper passes, but I acknowledge Commander Viktor's presence, as well as Commander Flik's. Who are the other two?"

"Friends of the State," Viktor quickly replied. "They're here to help us take back your city."

That seemed to strike a nerve with the Tinto officer. "It's your fault that Tinto fell. Your men should've stayed in the city, rather than chasing that diversion."

"Don't blame that on me!" Viktor shouted. "That was Jess and Hauser."

Flik blinked in surprise. He'd heard nothing of those two since Muse fell, but apparently they were here in Crom. While Flik was pondering this, Kahn stepped in to play mediator.

"Look, we all want Neclord dead, right? Let's not argue over who lost what or who should've done what."

The Tinto guard crossed his arms. "Fine. You may enter the town. I assume you remember where the command post is?"

"I haven't forgotten," Viktor retorted. He urged his horse forward, and Flik followed, listening closely to the undercurrent of conversation among the soldiers of the guard. It was obvious that there wasn't much affection between the two groups. Flik found it difficult not to naturally side with the State Army. After all, the government of Tinto had sat out the war, refused any help until nearly too late, and was now blaming the State Army for failing to hold Tinto City.

There was also a decided interest in Sierra. Flik could hear several of the men talking about the "beautiful girl" riding behind him, though one suggested that she was "too pale." One soldier laughed and said that it was high time Flik found a girlfriend. When Sierra laughed behind him, all Flik could do was look down and study his horse's mane.

The inside of Crom was a riot of noise. Soldiers patrolled the streets, but all around them, some semblance of normal life continued. Flik could hear a merchant arguing loudly with a government official over the issue of price controls. A well-muscled man in a sleeveless pink shirt bumped into Flik's horse, startling him. The interloper didn't even apologize, but stepped to the side and ran off, his long, thin, black braid flopping behind him. Moments later, a group of angry men charged by in pursuit.

Flik put the probable thief out of his mind as they approached a large house built of white sandstone. This seemed to be the center of activity, with messengers dashing into and out of the structure. Someone must have heard they were coming, for there were a number of grooms ready to take their horses. When the animals were led away, Viktor walked up to the front doors, accepted the salutes of the sentries, and entered.

The interior of the building was even louder than the city. It was obviously a well-to-do residence, but it had quickly been converted into a headquarters. One room was filled with clerks busily scratching on papers. A pair of officials were shouting at each other in the front hall, arguing over shipping priorities. Off to one side was a kitchen where the household staff was cooking a large meal. In the midst of this, an officer approached Viktor, recognized him, and waved him into a back room.

Here, clustered around a little table, were the leaders of the combined armies. Gustav, who was haggard, unshaven, and was working with his sleeves rolled back, glanced up and said, "Looks like Viktor's back."

Riou, Nanami, and Klaus looked none the worse for wear, but Ridley was leaning on a crutch. Flik was glad to see the leader of the kobolds on his feet, though he only offered Ridley a simple nod in greeting. He knew Ridley wouldn't want any more than that.

Viktor also got straight to the point. He gestured and said, "This is Sierra, she's agreed to help us, so I guess everything's in place."

Klaus bowed in the direction of the vampire. "Thank you for agreeing to help us so readily, Mistress Sierra."

Sierra smiled, though she didn't reveal her fangs. "It is always convenient to mix business with pleasure."

Klaus cleared his throat and quickly turned to face Flik. "I'd heard that Shu was going to send you into the theater. What news do you bring?"

"My men have advanced as far as Drakemouth. Shu and Apple are with them and will coordinate with your orders. Also, we've been reinforced by locally hired mercenaries under the command of-" Flik paused, unsure of how to introduce the great swordsman. Finally, he simply said, "-Georg Prime."

Viktor rounded on Flik, a startled expression on his face. "Wait! 'Deathblow' was in your camp and you didn't introduce me to him? I'm very disappointed in you, keeping him all to yourself."

Flik held his hands out, warding Viktor off. "He asked for anonymity, Viktor. I didn't want to go against his wishes."

"But he could be an important ally!" Viktor protested. "You should've had him come so that Riou could meet him."

Before this discussion could progress any further, the door to the meeting room slammed open. In the threshold was a man with long, brown, bushy sideburns. He had the look of a man out of the wild, wearing armor made of boiled leather and a red bandanna. The pair of axes on his waist were serious, though, and Flik moved his hand to the hilt of his sword.

"Calm down, Flik," Viktor said, placing himself between Flik and the newcomer. "This is Gijimu, leader of the Lampdragon bandits. He's with us."

"What's the news?" Gustav asked, his voice betraying impatience.

"A couple more stragglers from Tinto came in," the bandit replied, his voice all business. "My brother Koyu and one of your men. They got news that I think you want to hear." He waved the pair of boys into the room.

Flik recognized Koyu from their first meeting. The other boy was a little older and had the appearance of a scholar, what with those large glasses perched on his beak of a nose. He was wearing a yellow coat over a brown dress gown, and looked worn out from his escape.

Gustav's face brightened at seeing the pair, especially the scholar. "Marlowe! Is that you? Does this me that my Lilly is safe too?" His tone became insistent. "Come in, sit down, tell me the news. Someone get him some wine!"

"Who is this?" Flik asked Viktor.

"I think he's the tutor for Gustav's daughter, maybe?"

Meanwhile, Marlowe demurred, not looking Gustav in the face. "Lady Lilly…uh…"

"She got captured," Koyu concluded. Marlowe's mouth snapped shut, his face turning white.

"What?" Gustav's fist pounded the table with an audible cracking noise. "Is this true, Marlowe? Speak up!"

Marlowe swallowed. "Yeah…uh…I was hiding in one of the luggage trunks when I saw her being carried away. They also got one of the bandits, a woman."

Gijimu suddenly snapped upright. "Sister Lo Wen? Koyu, is this true? Why didn't you stop it?"

Koyu backed away from his brother. "You always told me to run when things get out of hand."

Gustav had fallen back into his chair. "Lilly was still alive when you saw her?" he asked Marlowe. "Why would that demon want my sweet little girl?"

"He wants a bride," Sierra answered. "Neclord was always finicky like that. Only a woman of class will suit his tastes."

With a roar of anger, Gustav surged up out of his chair, grabbed the edge of the table, and upended it, spilling maps and papers onto the floor. Viktor and Flik jumped back, out of the way. Ridley nearly got caught, but Riou and Klaus bore him aside. "Viktor, we must do this tonight!" Gustav shouted. "I won't let that filthy wretch lay a finger on my precious daughter!"

Klaus glanced down at the overturned table, then tried his best to calm the governor of Tinto. "Our forces are not yet concentrated. We must strike deliberately, not foolishly."

Gustav snatched his blue coat off his chair with such force that he launched the piece of furniture into the air. It shattered against the wall behind him. "The men of Tinto will march now, as soon as we're ready! I will not let that vampire defile my city any further!" He scowled and stomped towards the door, his expression making Gijimu jump aside. "If you wish to help us, you should get your men ready too." With those words he disappeared down the hall.

Klaus sighed, closing his eyes. "I advise that we help him, even if he is moving too soon. He will fail without our support."

Riou smiled reassuringly. "It will be okay, Klaus. Get the men ready, while we prepare for our part."

Klaus nodded and walked from the room. Sierra followed after him, mumbling something that Flik thought ended "-lot of cute ones in this army."

Flik shuddered, turning his attention away from the vampire and back to those remaining. "What is this plan, Riou? Are we planning a direct assault on Tinto or is there something else in mind?"

"The attack is a diversion," Riou answered. "We're going to sneak into the city and confront Neclord directly."

Kahn bent down and searched through the papers on the floor. "Gustav assures us we can get in through one of the mine shafts." He found the paper he'd been looking for and held it up, revealing a map. Sure enough, there was a path leading from an entrance east of Crom into the city of Tinto itself.

Flik squinted, trying to trace the route. It seemed to stretch for miles on the paper. "How long is this going to take?"

"We're expecting it won't be much more than a day," Viktor replied. Then he added, "Hopefully."

For a moment, Flik felt a wave of anxiety. He'd been in caves before, but never for that long. Thinking about it now, the possibility of being trapped underground, cut off from light and warmth. Wouldn't it be like walking into a tomb? He shook his head. Riou was going. Nanami was sure to go, if only to protect her brother. Viktor and Kahn and Sierra would enter. They all had their reasons to oppose Neclord.

"I'll come too," Flik said. It wasn't as though he had a personal hatred of Neclord, but rather that he wanted to be alongside Viktor. If this was to be the culmination of his friend's mission to avenge his hometown, then Flik wanted to be there with him.

"You're welcome to join us," Riou replied. He glanced around the room. "Since Gustav is moving up the schedule, we need to get ready as well. Let's do it."

The remainder of the day passed by in a whirlwind of activity. Flik found himself gathering rope at one point, then sitting down with Kahn to go over the planned route at another. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Koyu and Marlowe talking in hushed tones, but wasn't able to make out what they were saying. He finally managed to speak a few words with Ridley late in the day, as the evening light was fading over the mountains.

The kobold general had retreated to an upstairs sitting room, where he'd taken a chair and was massaging his legs. Up close, Flik could see furrows of missing fur on Ridley's muzzle, places where the skin had been broken and healed. Ridley looked up from his work and said, "Is there something I can help you with, Sir Flik?"

Flik wanted to say that he was grateful that Ridley had survived, but couldn't. There were some subjects that soldiers never spoke about, especially right before a mission. Instead, he responded, "How are you feeling?" and hoped that the kobold would get the message.

"There is still some pain in my leg." Ridley grimaced and returned to massaging it. "But I should be able to return to action shortly. I don't think I could abide it if my injuries were crippling."

Flik responded by nodding. He could think of no worse fate than to become a burden to his comrades. Even death might be preferable. He turned at the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Viktor's head appeared, followed by the rest of the warrior as he climbed the last steps.

"There you are. We're just about ready to go." He pounded his fists together. "This time I'll give that damn Neclord the death he deserves."

Groaning, Ridley pulled himself up out of the chair, using his crutch and the wall for support. "Let me walk with you for a little while. Even if I can't fight with you directly, at least I can start you on your way."

"Thank you," Flik replied. Supporting the kobold's free shoulder, Flik helped Ridley manage the stairs with Viktor preceding them. For the first time since entering the house, it was nearly quiet. The clerks, messengers, and even most of the servants had cleared out, leaving only scattered papers and empty desks as evidence that this place had served as headquarters.

It was fully night when they stepped outside, the sky covered by thick clouds that made the light of the Scarlet Moon blotchy and distant. A ring of lit braziers provided more immediate illumination, and Flik could see Riou and Nanami ahead of them, speaking with the vice-mayor of Muse, Jess. Hauser stood stiffly nearby, inclining his head slightly to acknowledge Flik, Viktor, and Ridley.

"I'll never accept you as our leader," Jess was saying. Part of his face was caught in the torchlight. His eyes were intense and angry. "The people of Jowston do not need help from an outsider!"

"Grandfather Genkaku was from Jowston!" Nanami retorted. As in situations like this, she had placed herself firmly between her brother and the perceived threat. Flik couldn't see her face, but he could imagine the anger on it.

"Yet his grave is in Highland." Jess' mouth tightened in anger, but he continued to squeeze a few more words out. "He abandoned country and city, for what, because he disagreed with Mayor Darrel's methods? Because he wanted to live where his actions would be approved of?"

Riou suddenly stepped forward into the light, cutting off Nanami's next argument. His face was composed under Jess' glare. "My grandfather didn't live for approval. He lived to do what was right. When it was right to defend the people of Muse, he fought with every ounce of his strength. When it was right to make peace and end a senseless war, he sat and negotiated. And when it was right to save the life of a friend and sacrifice his honor, he held his blade and would not strike."

Riou smiled. There wasn't the slightest hint of animus in his tone. "I'm not fighting for approval, yours or anyone's. I'm fighting because it's the right thing to do. Because all around me are people who've fled their homes and are waiting for someone to defeat the monster that's taken their city. That's why I'm fighting here. If you want to join us, have your men fall in, but I can't waste any more time trying to explain myself." He turned, quickly vanishing outside the ring of light. Nanami remained a second more, then dashed after her brother.

Hauser approached Jess and quietly asked, "Your orders, sir?" Jess didn't answer. He'd turned his face away so that the shadows hid his expression. "Sir, I must tell you that the men will probably choose to go with Riou whether you give your consent or not," Hauser warned. "I, of course, will abide by your constitutional authority."

"Go," Jess answered, his voice a harsh whisper. "Go, help Riou. It is the right thing to do." Hauser bowed, then turned and trotted off into the darkness. Viktor, Flik, and Ridley started forward, their boots crunching on loose gravel. Jess' head jerked in their direction, his face emerging back into the light. He looked worn out, but there was defiance in his voice as he said, "Go on, you can gloat. I no longer control the fate of my city. I've been defeated by a child." He turned his back on them, staring out into the night sky.

"I think Anabelle would be proud of you," Viktor replied softly. "All that matters is that in the end, you made the correct decision, and that's what will save Muse." Jess didn't offer any response, but pressed his lips together tightly and walked past Viktor, back into the headquarters.

"I'll talk with him later," Ridley offered. "For now, I need to see you two off. We wouldn't want to delay Riou any longer."

They walked down avenues that were filling up soldiers bearing torches, so that a long line of light stretched out before and behind them. For the moment, all was noise and confusion. Officers were shouting for men to get in formation, horses and mules were braying, and, for the soldiers of Tinto, relatives were milling around. Up near the head of the column, Flik found the others mounted on horses, conversing with Gustav and Klaus.

"We will arrive before Tinto City by sunrise, I expect," Gustav declared. "Neclord will know we're coming; the whole point of our operation is to distract him, after all. Once we arrive, you have two days." He held up two large fingers to emphasize the point. "If you don't defeat Neclord by then, I'll try to take the city with my own men. That damn vampire can't have enough zombies to hold the men of Tinto out of their own city!" Behind him, Klaus grimaced, obviously not in agreement with the last point.

Viktor and Flik had mounted their own horses by this time. Sierra had already transformed into a white bat and had disappeared into the night sky. A handful of other men had been assigned to Riou for this mission. They were locals who knew the way to the mine and extra guards to make sure they got to the mine safely. Riou nodded to Gustav. "I think we're ready."

"Go," Gustav growled. "May you have good fortune in the mines."

They went, and though the pace had to be at a walk, they quickly left behind the assembling armies. For some time, Flik could look over his shoulder and see the light from the torches. The light began its own movement, tracking from right to left behind him, until at last he couldn't see it anymore.

They rode in silence and almost total darkness. Flik could hear the clopping of his horse on the hard earth and the animal's breathing. Likewise, he could hear those noises from the other horses. His eyes strained to make out shapes in the shadows. A larger one to his right was Viktor on his horse. There was a little light from the two moons, but it weak, blocked by clouds that covered the sky. It was warm, the warmest night that Flik had experienced in Tinto. Eventually, he began to sweat a little.

There were only a few pauses to break up the monotony, and Flik fell into a kind of doze. The ridge to the east, their destination, was only a solid mass of darkness, growing ever larger the closer they got. Suddenly, one mass appeared to detach itself from the rest, looming right up over Flik. His horse whinnied, feeling his nervousness, and shied away. The motion allowed him to see that this new shadow was nothing alive, but simply a much closer mound, one that rose more than a hundred feet into the sky.

He wasn't the only one who was surprised. "What is that?" Nanami whispered.

The answer came from one of the guides, a whisper clearly audible in the silence. "Slag heap."

Flik didn't ask what a slag heap was. It gave off an unpleasant odor and there was a definite heat rising off of it. He focused on riding around it. There were more ahead. Soon the giant mounds loomed over him on both sides. A clatter of stones nearby startled him, making him draw his sword. He wasn't the only one, for he could hear the rasp of blades all around him.

"Is it an enemy?" Viktor asked.

"No enemy," Sierra called out, from above. "Unlike you, I can see perfectly in this light. Nothing but some rocks settling."

Flik carefully sheathed his sword and urged his horse onward. After the next slag heap, all that stood before them was the side of the mountain and a yawning blackness that signaled the opening to the mine. The hard earth led up to a carved rock shelf, and the entrance, a hole about twelve feet wide and seven feet high. Here they had to dismount. He grabbed his pack, shifting its weight on his back. He knew it would take some time to get used to the several pounds of food and water, rope and spikes.

As the final preparations were being made, Flik walked right up to the opening. He stubbed his foot against a metal rail that ran along the ground. Further inspection revealed several of these, though he didn't understand their purpose. All they served to do now was nearly trip him up.

Viktor started cursing beside him, startling Flik. He looked over to find his friend bent over, examining the ground. Viktor stood up, put his hand on Flik's shoulder, and said, "Some adventure we're about have, right?"

Flik shrugged. "If we don't break our toes on the way in."

Riou came up on Flik's other side, along with Nanami, Kahn, and Sierra. "We'll get some light as soon as we enter. I don't want to give away everything now that we've arrived." He walked past them, a shadow vanishing into the deeper gloom ahead. Nanami quickly followed after.

"It's good to know that someone's eager," Kahn quipped.

"I'm eager," Viktor retorted. "Eager to ram my sword right through that damn vampire's miserable hide! Let's go." He took a step, then another, and was swallowed up by the dark. Sierra walked in with all the grace of a creature who could see perfectly in the dark.

"Hell, I waited for days in the Cave of the Wind," Kahn muttered. "This can't be worse, can it?" He too, was engulfed.

Flik hesitated, waiting for any screams of agony or cries of warning. He could feel nothing but the beating of his own heart. "I suppose Viktor would never let me live it down if I chickened out here." Gathering his courage, he forced his legs into motion, and swallowed as the deepest blackness seemed to reach out to embrace him.


	76. Chapter 76 The Way

**Chapter 76 – The Way**

Flik stumbled down the shaft, afraid that he had hesitated too long, that his friends had left him behind. Pale light blossomed ahead of him and he picked up the pace. As he approached, he could see that the light was being generated by Riou's Rune. Viktor gave Flik a wink when Flik caught up. Flik shrugged back, then noted that Kahn and Riou were studying the map.

The light was sufficient for Flik to make out features sixty feet away. He slowly turned about, taking in his surroundings. They were in a chamber filled with evenly spaced supports of wood and rock. The ceiling was little more than a foot above his head. He had to fight the urge to stoop.

"That way," Kahn said, pointing left, off into the darkness. He rolled up the map and their journey began, Riou in the lead.

For a time, they walked past the seemingly endless supports. The mine was silent except for the sound of their footsteps on the loose gravel of the floor. Abruptly, they came to a corner where the path turned to the right. Riou glanced back to Kahn, who nodded. They continued onward, solid rock to their left, pillars and open shafts to their right.

Finally, a path appeared on their left, too. Flik recognized it from studying the map. Taking this course would ultimately lead them to the mines of Tinto City. Riou turned without hesitating and walked on, dispersing the gloom with his Rune.

And that's when the original plan came undone. After fifteen minutes of walking down the shaft, they were confronted by a wall of smashed timbers, large rocks, and loose earth.

"Oh hell," Kahn muttered. "The mine's collapsed here. We can't go onward."

Viktor walked up to the obstruction, pulling on one of the embedded timbers. "Can we dig our way forward?" He pulled harder and the timber snapped. Viktor fell backwards with a grunt.

Flik offered him a hand up. "That's probably not smart." He glanced back up at the ceiling, which now appeared much more threatening. "We don't want to bring the whole place down on our heads."

Nanami looked up, then reflexively crouched. "Could that happen? I don't want to be crushed to death!"

"That is always a possibility when dealing with caves," the Star Dragon Sword declared. "On the other hand, getting crushed by several thousand tons of rock all at once is a relatively painless way to die. You won't even know what hit you, unless you're unfortunate enough to get trapped in a pocket of air, but the odds of that are statistically insignificant."

Nanami covered her ears. "Stop talking about it!"

"You shouldn't worry so much," Sierra said. She stretched her arms out in front and yawned. "You can't help but take risks if you want to get things done. Of course, if the roof did come down, I'd just turn into mist and drift outside, so it wouldn't bother me much." Nanami frowned and looked away from Sierra.

Viktor was still holding his end of the timber, which he hurled at the cave-in. "Damn it! I'll get to Neclord, even if I have to tunnel through this mountain with my fingernails!" The wood bounced harmlessly off a rock and clattered to the stone floor.

Flik turned to watch Riou and Kahn, who were looking at the map rather than complaining. Tracing on the paper with his fingertip, Kahn suddenly exclaimed, "Ah-ha!"

"You've found another way?" Flik asked, stepping closer to look at the paper.

"It's a bit rough." Kahn started rolling up the parchment before Flik could see what he was talking about. "The path's not nearly as defined, but I believe it will take us all the way to Tinto. We're just lucky that the Miners' Guild was so thorough in their mapping."

"How rough is 'a bit rough'?" Flik continued.

"We'll probably have to break out the ropes," Kahn said. "You can climb a secured rope, can't you?"

He'd done that back in the Warrior's Village and not much since then, but he wasn't about to say he couldn't. Regardless, now they had a new plan to follow, so Riou led them back out into the chamber of stone supports. They continued along the outer edge, passing nearly a dozen shafts that opened to the left before Riou stopped. Kahn briefly consulted with the map and declared, "This is the one."

At first the passage was like any other, complete with wooden supports and the signs of mining. However, as Riou's Rune rolled back the darkness, Flik could see that the far end of the shaft was boarded over, preventing any further progress. A warning sign had been placed on the boards, in case any further admonition was needed. They walked forward and Viktor rapped experimentally on the obstruction. They could hear the noise echoing on the other side.

Viktor drew the Star Dragon Sword. "So, are we going to smash this down?"

"I am not a tool for mere smashing!" the sword complained, rattling in Viktor's hands. "Your comrades have more than enough magical power to reduce this to kindling."

"But it's more fun to smash things with your own hands," Viktor groused.

"Then put me down and actually use your hands for once! I have no desire to get scuffed up!" the sword retorted.

Riou walked up beside Viktor. "Stand back and look away."

Viktor backed up a few steps and continued his conversation with the sword. "You know, for being an all-powerful Rune, you sure are prissy. What good is a sword if you can't use it?"

Flik looked aside as the light from Riou's Rune suddenly trebled in intensity, filling the corridor with light. He could hear the blocking timbers creaking and also the Star Dragon Sword's counter argument. "At least I have some self-respect. If you want to go around being smelly and dirty, that's your own business, but I prefer not to sink to your level!"

Viktor yelled something at the sword, but it was drowned out in the rush of noise from Riou's Rune. Flik closed his eyes, hiding them behind a red veil and a sudden spike of heat. After a second, the light and heat subsided back to tolerable levels. Once the afterglow had faded from Flik's eyes, he could see that the passage ahead was clear, save for the smoking remains of a few timbers. Beyond was a natural cave, the ground and ceiling uneven.

"Does anyone know why this was abandoned?" Nanami asked, trepidation evident in her voice.

"The area is unstable, or so I was told by Gustav," Kahn answered. "Apparently we're near an underground aquifer that supplies water to the Lana."

Nanami shook her head. "You're telling me that this is easier than trying to fight our way into Tinto directly?"

Sierra was already walking forward. "Neclord is a notorious coward. If he knows we're coming with enough power to defeat him, he'll flee to work his evil somewhere else."

Riou glanced over at Flik. "Could you take over the light duty?" Riou was breathing hard and sweat glistened on his forehead.

Flik raised his right hand. "Sure." The light that flowed out from his lightning rune seemed weak in comparison to Riou's but it was enough to see by. It also meant that Flik had to take the lead.

The traveled for hours. Eventually Flik passed the duty of maintaining the light off to Nanami. The walls of the cave grew damp, then wet. Flik found himself sloshing through puddles on the floor and ducking around both stalactites and stalagmites. He began to worry that he'd end up tripping over the latter and smashing his head against the former. Worse still was when the tunnel began to climb, or when holes appeared in the floor. Some dropped only a few feet, and Flik could see the bottom when he shined his rune into them. The depth of the others could only be determined by having Sierra turn into a bat and fly down to the bottom.

As Kahn predicted, they had to break out the ropes and spikes to scale many of the slopes. In this case, Sierra would often ascend first as a bat and then secure the rope at the top, after which the others would climb up. Riou and Nanami proved to be excellent rope climbers, having both the dexterity and size to navigate tight spaces. For his own part, Flik tried not to worry about getting stuck when the walls grew narrow. Instead, he worried about Viktor getting stuck.

At the top of one climb, after he'd recovered his breath, Viktor said, "Let this be a lesson, Flik. Getting old sucks. I used to be able to eat anything and not worry about my waist."

"I seriously doubt that," the Star Dragon Sword retorted. "Next time we have to squeeze through a space like that, pass me up first. I don't want to get stuck with this idiot. I'd have to put up with his complaining until he succumbed."

Flik laughed. "Thinking about taking up that all-salad diet of Huan's?"

Viktor frowned, but looked back down the dark hole they'd just climbed up. "Remind me to cut down to three cups of rice with my curried beef."

After a few more scrambles like that, even Viktor's good humor subsided into silence. Flik's arms and legs began to grow sore. His clothes were damp from groundwater and his own sweat. He realized that he'd been awake for hours, yet he had no idea what time it was. His stomach growled uncomfortably. The noise seemed to echo in the cave, but no one appeared to notice. He wondered if he hadn't imagined it.

Suddenly they came to a stop again. Flik put his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath, before looking up to see what would be required this time. He found the others staring at a solid wall of earth and stone. There was no going forward through that.

"Damn," Kahn muttered. He was now generating light for the party.

"What now?" Viktor asked irritably. "Do we need to turn around and march back the way we came?" Flik, standing at the back of the group, looked over his shoulder into the darkness.

"Let's check the map," Kahn answered. "Maybe we can find another way around." He didn't sound very hopeful. "We're nearly there. If we can just find a way to get up another hundred feet."

"How about we rest?" Nanami asked. She started to sit down, then checked the ground beneath her and decided that it was too damp for her posterior. She straightened up and added, "At least let's have something to eat. I know I'm not the only one who's hungry." Without waiting for anyone's consent, she swung her pack around and started rummaging through it, pulling out a block of cheese.

"I think we could use a break," Sierra agreed, setting down her pack. "Exhaustion leads to poor decisions."

"Yeah, fine." Viktor glared at the wall, then turned his back to it and sat down. "Let's eat and after that, I'll break this thing down with my bare hands."

Flik began to lean back, his hand searching along the damp stone for a comfortable nook. Instead, his fingers came up against warm flesh. Much to his embarrassment, he yelped as if he'd touched a burning coal and scrambled away from the wall, nearly tripping over his feet. "Someone's there!" he shouted.

In an instant, weapons were drawn. Flik regained his feet and pulled out his own sword. He and Viktor turned to confront the intruder, while Kahn increased the light from his rune and Riou stepped in front of Nanami. Out of the corner of his eye, Flik noted Sierra yawning and stretching her arms. Then the intruder spoke, drawing his attention.

"Who dares to interrupt the meditation of the great Mazus?"

Flik wasn't sure what to make of the speaker. He was a man dressed in a heavy, but fine, cloak and several layers of long coats and dress robes, all in varying shades of purple. His brown hair, thin beard, and long, thin mustache were all impeccably groomed. His face was covered in the lines of age, especially his forehead, and his mouth was curled back in a smile that could only be described as smug. Here was a man who should be in a court, not a cave.

While Flik was studying him, Mazus appeared to study them in return, ignoring the two swordpoints hovering inches from his throat. "An impressive collection you have here – the Bright Shield, the Night Rune, and even the Mistress of Vampires. I have heard that my former master has woken from his slumber. Perhaps I should rejoin the cycle as well."

"Care to explain how you know so much about us?" Viktor threatened. "Maybe you're some sort of spy for Neclord." He pushed the point of his sword in closer, nearly touching Mazus' throat.

Mazus ignored that, instead focusing on Riou. "So, you are the one this time, right? I offer you my services until the cycle of destiny is resolved. All I ask in exchange is a place to continue my experiments."

"I still wonder why we should trust you," Viktor said. "It seems awfully convenient for us to find you here. How can we know for sure you're not working for our enemies?"

"Convenience is an illusion," Mazus responded. "I am here both because I had a choice and because I had no choice. More importantly to you, you have no way forward without me."

"Do you even know what this conflict is about?" Flik asked. "Why are you so eager to join a war that doesn't involve you?"

Mazus snorted in humor. "On the contrary, I believe I know better than you what is going on. The things that you think are important – borders, governments, and nationality – all of these things are artifices created by humans. None of them reflect the truth, so I care nothing about the rise and fall of nations."

Nanami stepped out from behind Riou. "What do you think we are fighting for?"

"Can we rebuild that which has been torn down by the hand of humanity?" Mazus asked.

"What?" Flik responded. He wasn't the only one.

"This conflict has left so much in ruin," Mazus answered. "Before it ends, it will threaten to destroy all that it encompasses, both physical and spiritual. Who, then, will restore to us what is lost? That is what this is about. Knowing that, why should I stand aside when destiny has picked me out?"

Riou looked at Mazus quizzically. "So you were waiting for us here all this time?"

"Not at all." Mazus smiled and stepped away from the wall, almost as if he were detaching himself from it. Viktor and Flik backed away, lowering their blades. "I had no idea you would come this way. I was simply studying my earth magic." Flik glanced beyond Mazus; he was surprised that there wasn't a man-shaped indentation in the stone.

"Wait," Kahn said, rubbing his lower lip. "A minute ago you said you were here because of us and now you say you weren't. Which one is it?"

"Both," Mazus replied. "I could judge the stars and tell that something of importance would pass this way, yet I knew not what form it would take." He cleared his throat and turned to face Nanami. "So, you were talking about food?" Mazus continued. He stretched and Flik could hear popping and cracking from his joints. "I could use a little something to eat; it's been a couple of years since the last time I had anything." He smiled towards Nanami. "That cheese looks absolutely delicious."

Nanami looked doubtfully at the yellow cheese in her hand, then handed the whole block over to the mage. "Go ahead. I'm kind of sick of cheese anyway."

"I still don't trust you fully," Viktor warned.

Mazus didn't even bother to look in Viktor's direction. "Seeing as most of you didn't even know I was there, if I truly were your enemy, you'd be nothing more than drifting ashes by this point, and I'd have a talking sword to study." Without another word, he took an enormous bite out of the cheese.

"He isn't your enemy, Viktor," Sierra said. "He may be a bit eccentric, but that's only the result of his experiments." At this point, Mazus jammed the remainder of the cheese fully into his mouth. "I'm not sure we could make him go away if he's got his mind set on staying with us. Trust me," she concluded.

Flik sheathed his sword. He wasn't entirely sure about Mazus, but there seemed to be no point in antagonizing him. "You said you can help us go forward. Do you know another way through these caves?" Flik asked. "We have to get to Tinto."

"Patience," Mazus mumbled, mouth full of cheese. He chewed a couple more times, then waved his right hand dismissively at the stone wall. A rune on his forehead glowed and, with a mighty rumbling, part of the wall suddenly split, a thin seam opening from floor to ceiling. To Flik's disbelief, tons of rock simply swung aside, like a door being opened, revealing more tunnel beyond.

Viktor frowned. "Great, I feel like we've just been saddled with a larger version of Luc. Hell, if it gets us closer to Neclord, I suppose I can tolerate anything. Let's go."

"Not before I get a drink," Mazus said, licking crumbs of cheese off his fingers. "A spell like that is thirsty work." He eyed the rest of them carefully. "Is anyone packing wine, or is it just water?"

Once Mazus was satisfied, they set off again. The way that he'd revealed was easier than the earlier path, though it did rise sharply. For a time, they were walking nearly doubled over. As they climbed, Flik noted that the walls became drier, until finally all trace of water had vanished.

"There's light ahead!" Nanami shouted. Flik, who'd been focusing on the ground at his feet, unbent slowly. In the distance he could see a faint point of natural light.

Nanami started to dash forward, but Viktor put out his hand to stop her. "Hold up." Everyone stopped around him, as he squinted off into the distance and frowned. "Don't you think it's odd that we've seen no sign of zombie activity here? Neclord's got to know that there's more than one way into Tinto, since he was able to launch a surprise attack himself. There's got to be some sort of trap."

Riou looked from Viktor to the exit. "How should we proceed? We have to go forward to get to Neclord."

"We can handle anything he's got prepared," Sierra said confidently. "Why don't you lead the way, Viktor, or are you afraid?"

Viktor glowered at Sierra, then pulled out the Star Dragon Sword and turned to face forward. "Gah! Nothing of Neclord's scares me! I'll crush him!" He charged towards the exit.

A small smile slipped onto Sierra's face. "We should follow him. Not too closely, though."

"You'd best have your weapons ready, as well," Mazus added.

Flik drew his sword and took the lead as they jogged after Viktor. Approaching the exit, the walls and ceiling of the cave fell back, opening to a large, vaulted chamber. Fifty yards away, the afternoon sky was clearly visible, distant mountains silhouetted against the light.

Viktor was halfway across the room when the ground began shaking. Flik started to sprint, even as a giant fist of stone rose out of the chamber floor. It was large enough to easily bear Viktor up towards the roof. Flik tried to get closer, but a second arm appeared, again rising out of the earth, blocking his way. This was followed by a head and torso, all apparently of stone, as if some giant creature were trying to pull itself upright. It stood nearly as tall as the ceiling and was twenty feet wide. The fist carrying Viktor crunched hard into the roof, making the room vibrate and sending down a shower of stone shards.

Flik cried out and whipped up his shield, ducking as stone clattered off of it and all around him. The other arm was sweeping forward, a wall of stone rushing right at him. He stumbled backwards and tripped over the debris at his feet, but Kahn grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him aside. The giant knuckles passed within feet of his face, stirring up a wind that tugged at both men's cloaks.

"Where's Viktor?" Flik shouted, trying to regain his feet. Riou dashed through his vision, the Bright Shield Rune starting to glow in his hand. Sierra stood back, a rune of darkness radiating on her hand. A globe of similar darkness appeared around the monstrosity's head.

"There!" Nanami shouted, at Flik's side, pointing back to the first giant arm. Flik followed her gaze and saw that Viktor had rolled out of the way, down the arm, and was valiantly hacking at it with the Star Dragon Sword. That was all Flik had time to see before Riou's Rune filled the chamber with blinding light.

The stone monster started to thrash about, hammering its fists into the floor, each blow making Flik tremble. He reached out to Kahn and Nanami and found them doing likewise, all trying to stay upright. Mazus, meanwhile, appeared unaffected by the monster's fury, but stood with his hands outstretched. As the light from Riou's Rune cleared, there was a fiery explosion engulfing the elbow of the monster's left arm. The whole forearm was severed. It cartwheeled over their heads, shattering into stone and earth on the far wall. The impact was enough to knock Flik off his feet.

"It's weak!" Mazus shouted, breathless. "Keep at it!"

Flik wasn't sure how he could get into it. He got up onto his hands and knees, looked up, and saw that the thing was swinging its remaining arm in great arcs in front of its body. Riou had to scramble back before he could cast another spell. Another sweep of the arm nearly caught Sierra, who turned into her bat form and zipped away. All the while, Viktor lay flat of the limb, holding on with one arm and hacking away with the Star Dragon Sword in the other.

A spear of ice as large as Flik flashed before his eyes, cast by Nanami. It shattered full on the monster's torso, rocking it back. Flik finally remembered his rune, and sent a ball of lighting towards the monster's good shoulder. Pieces of rock exploded in all directions, and both Nanami and Flik sheltered behind his shield. The giant arm passed over their heads, then back again, slower this time, sweeping across the room. On the third pass, Viktor managed to stand up and, bracing the Star Dragon Sword with both hands, plunged it in at the elbow.

The monster groaned, though Flik hadn't thought that possible, and tried to raise the arm. Instead, the forearm bent, then snapped right off, falling towards the floor. And right at Flik.

He was vaguely aware of Nanami and Kahn scrambling away at either side but, for the oddest reason, he couldn't make his own legs move. He watched as Viktor, riding the arm down, jumped off backwards, disappearing out of Flik's sight behind the arm of stone. At the last moment, Flik's instincts told him to put up his shield, a gesture that he knew to be futile as the shadow fell over him.

The world roared as the arm crashed right in front of him, disintegrating into a wave of gravel and dirt. Flik closed his eyes as he was swept off his feet and pummeled from all sides. For one long instant, he thought he was going to be rolled forever, but the motion subsided, leaving him battered and stung by dozens of small abrasions, but only covered by a layer of pebbles.

He shook himself, feeling grit fall out of his hair, and tried to get back to his feet. There was more grit in his mouth, which he spat out, before Nanami was at his side, her water rune glowing.

"Are you hurt badly?" she asked, placing her hand on his cheek.

Viktor also appeared, as nonchalant as if he were on a stroll. "You really ought to try dodging when something like that is coming at you, unless you want to look like ground sausage."

Flik winced and stood upright, scanning the room for any sign of the stone monster. His heart was pounding. "What happened?"

Riou, Kahn, and Mazus were examining a large mound of stones and earth in the center of the room. "It's defeated," Riou answered.

"It was a simple matter to undo the runic binding once the arms were gone," Mazus explained. "Really, this was a second-rate golem, at best. Whoever created this is little better than an apprentice, whatever powers he has access to."

Sierra had reappeared and was dusting herself off. "How very typical of Neclord. He was always searching for shortcuts to hard tasks. He never did figure out how to work hard at anything."

"Speaking of that," Viktor declared, turning to face the vampire, "you knew that trap was there, didn't you?"

Sierra smiled. "But you're not hurt, are you, Viktor?"

Viktor shook the Star Dragon Sword at her. "I nearly got squished because of that thing!"

Kahn walked over and placed his hand on Viktor's shoulder. "It won't help you to get mad at her," he said soothingly. "We should focus on Neclord for now. We're nearly there."

Riou looked up from examining the remains. "Yes, we should confront Neclord while there is daylight left."

Flik was still shaking gravel out of his clothing. Looking at all of the small rips on his cape and pants, he knew he'd need to visit a tailor after this was all over.

"If you can't go on, you can wait for us here," Viktor offered.

"I'm fine," Flik snapped. He knelt down to pick up his shield, ignoring the pinpricks of pain. He stood up, strapped the shield on his back, and concluded, "Let's finish what we've started." He ran his hand through his disheveled hair, scattering out more dirt, and started walking towards the light streaming in from the mouth of the cave.


	77. Chapter 77 Annihilate the Sorrows

**Chapter 77 – Annihilate the Sorrows**

Leaving behind the cave and the remains of the stone golem, Viktor, Flik, and the others found themselves immediately confronting a cleft in the side of the mountains. A hundred feet down the rocky, nearly vertical slope was a rivulet of flowing water. A narrow bridge of wooden planks spanned the gap, leading to a smaller opening in the rocks facing them. Flik's eyes were drawn up the slope. Above them, maybe another hundred feet, at the top of the opposite cliff, he could just make out the sides of buildings.

"There's a mine ahead," Kahn announced, checking the map. "It should lead us directly into the town." A gust of wind snatched at the parchment, though Kahn held on. "All we have to do is cross this bridge."

Flik looked at the structure again, even as another gust whipped his cloak up. "You'd think they would've built railings."

Riou led the way, carefully walking out onto the planks. Nanami hesitated only a moment and then joined her brother. Sierra, meanwhile, turned into a bat, flew across the gulf, and was waiting for the two of them when they arrived. Mazus and Kahn followed after them, each in turn. Then Viktor started across. Flik thought he heard the boards creaking, but maybe that was his imagination. Once Viktor had gained the other side, Flik realized that he was all alone on his side. He glanced up at the heavens and wondered why he was always the last to do these things.

Looking straight ahead, he walked out onto the bridge. The wind howled around him, but he kept his feet moving. Before he knew it, he was reunited with his friends. Flik was hoping for some accolades, but Riou merely nodded and started walking for entrance into the mine.

Inside there was evidence of a short struggle and hasty retreat. Pick-axes and shovels lay scattered about, some crusted with dried blood. They walked further in and found a line of overturned mining carts, an improvised barricade that had obviously failed.

"So, is this where they came in?" Viktor asked.

"It was very sudden," Riou commented. "Maybe half an hour after you, Ridley, and Klaus left with the troops, one of the shaft managers reported an incident. Gustav went to round up some of his men, but I felt that speed was necessary. Nanami and I went in and…there was Neclord."

"Did you try to fight him?" Flik wondered. They were now walking down a set of rails. Another barricade, this of heaped timbers, lay ahead. It too had failed.

"Of course!" Riou replied, just a bit of heat in his voice. "I wasn't going to simply let him walk into Tinto unopposed, even if I knew there was nothing we could do to stop him."

"Foolish youth," the Star Dragon Sword rebuked. "You put a lot at risk to satisfy your pride. My blade is the only one that can bite the vampire now."

"You can't blame Riou for trying," Viktor argued. He put a hand on Riou's shoulder. "After all, I did the same thing once."

"And it got you nowhere," the sword retorted.

"After you fought him, that's obviously when you made your escape," Flik observed.

Riou walked on a few more paces before responding in a quiet voice. "The Bright Shield reacted to Neclord's magic. I don't really remember what happened after that."

"I had to drag you along," Nanami explained. When Flik looked at her face, he could see her frowning in concern. "You were barely on your feet. By the time we got out, you were ready to collapse. There were zombies all around us, so I put you on my back and ran as hard as I could, until I couldn't go any further."

"Thank you." Riou's expression was distant, as though he were looking past Nanami. "You know, when I was out, I thought I saw Jowy."

"You had a dream about him?" Nanami asked. "He is your best friend, so that's normal."

Riou shook his head. "No, it wasn't a dream. I mean that I saw Jowy, in Muse. Pilika was there too. She was talking."

They had stopped walking. Flik didn't know what to say to Riou, especially on this topic. Jowy was their enemy, but also Riou's friend. As for Pilika, Flik couldn't imagine her speaking at all. She'd never said a word in his presence, so he had no idea what her voice sounded like.

Mazus suddenly cleared his throat. "There are some interesting theories about the Rune of the Beginning," he observed. "For instance, even though the Rune is normally split in two, it is suggested that the Rune still contains but one will. Thus, just as the two parts of the Rune are linked, so are the two bearers. This is why they are often great friends, or great foes, or both at once."

Nanami rounded on the mage. "Jowy is not our enemy!"

Mazus regarded her fury with a serene smile. "As you say. Well then, let us turn our attention back to getting out of here." He raised one robed arm and pointed forward. "It appears that there is some sort of contraption up ahead. Perhaps we can use it to make our way to the surface."

What was ahead appeared to be a large pen or cage of wood panels with a viewing screen built in. Inside and above the structure were a pair of thick cables. For a moment, Flik was dumbfounded, but then the answer came to him. "It's an elevator!"

Viktor snapped his fingers. "You know, I think you're right."

Flik regarded the machine dubiously as they walked forward. He had experience in them, both in the Liberation War and in this one. He didn't like them. He'd tried the elevator Adlai had installed just once. It rose unevenly and seemed to make ominous groaning noises as it worked. Taking the stairs seemed much safer to Flik after that.

He planted himself firmly in the middle of the pen and forced himself not to cringe when Riou pressed the button to operate the machine. It came to life with a shudder, gears grinding and the cables vibrating. Slowly, they began to rise, passing up through a shaft in the rock. Flik could feel the shaking in his legs. It was all he could do not to collapse on the spot.

Suddenly they were out of the shaft and, with one last jerk, the elevator came to a halt. Ahead was the exit. Beyond that, Flik could see the roofs of buildings. Silently, they walked the last few yards out into the afternoon sunlight.

Nanami wiped her forehead. "Phew! I don't want to do that ever again." Flik agreed with her, though he didn't voice it.

Viktor pounded his fist into his palm. "We're not done yet! We've got to hunt Neclord down and tear him to pieces. Where do you suppose he is?"

Flik slowly looked around, taking in the city of Tinto. The inhabitants had literally carved terraces into the side of a mountain so that the buildings appeared to be stacked on one another as they climbed up the slope. All of the structures were built of the ubiquitous, white sandstone he'd seen in Crom. Above them were a series of larger buildings, whose purpose he could not place. Surprisingly, at the apex of the city was a cathedral of stone, dedicated to the Circle Rune.

"My study of Neclord suggests that he likes places with religious imagery," Kahn said, also gazing at the cathedral. "That's probably where we'll find him."

A distant rumble made them turn their heads. In the haze at the foot of the mountain, more than half a mile below, Flik could just barely detect mass movements. Though he couldn't make out individuals, he was certain that what he saw were the allied armies, fighting against Neclord's hordes.

"Hopefully all the zombies are distracted," Flik said.

"We should tread carefully," Kahn warned. "Remember, our goal is to get to Neclord, not fight his minions."

They left the mine behind and started climbing. Though Flik was tired, he gathered energy from having his goal in sight. At last, all the houses were below them and all that remained was one long flight of stone stairs to the cathedral fifty feet above them. Riou had just mounted the first steps when the ground behind Flik began to rumble.

Flik turned, drawing his sword, and smoothly decapitated the zombie crawling out of the hole at his feet. The remainder of the corpse slumped down, but others were emerging from other traps.

"Looks like he didn't send them all down to fight!" Viktor shouted, smashing the Star Dragon Sword into the face of another zombie. More appeared; in seconds nearly twenty were upright and just as many were crawling up out of the ground.

Kahn's rune glowed and half a dozen of the nearer zombies puffed into ash. "Viktor! We must get to Neclord! Kill him and this will end!"

"I know, I know!" Viktor's sword snapped through the necks of two more zombies.

Flik drove his blade through the neck of another zombie, but even as the monster expired, its hands grasped his sword. The zombie behind it started to reach for Flik. Behind that zombie were dozens more, maybe approaching a hundred. Out of options, Flik drove forward, bearing his blade and the corpse on it right into the next zombie down the line. Dead hands clutched at him, but he set his feet and pulled back, finally freeing his sword.

There was a flash of light behind Flik. He whipped his head to one side to see the smoking ruins of six zombies further up the stairs, in front of Riou and Nanami. "Viktor, Kahn, Sierra, you three are the important ones!" Riou shouted. "Get up there!"

The zombies from behind surged forward, but suddenly the ground at their feet started to slide away. Mazus raised his hands, and the avalanche picked up speed, carrying dozens of zombies down the side of the mountain. "Go on, all of you!" He started to cackle, laughing as more zombies rose up out of the debris. "It's been a while since I've had a challenge like this. The last one killed me, I think!" He raised his hands again and more rocks slid away, flowing almost like water, taking zombies to their doom.

Flik decided it was better not to question Mazus' sanity. Riou was already sprinting up the steps, followed closely by Nanami. Kahn was next, his heavy coat billowing, his breath audible. Sierra had lifted into the sky. Viktor and Flik ran together, bringing up the rear. Flik's legs were burning with pain, but the top of the steps drew ever closer.

With one more burst of effort, Flik stood with the others at the landing before the intricately carved doors of the cathedral. He risked one look over his shoulder, but clouds of white dust obscured the bottom of the steps. Then he turned back to the others, as Kahn started to speak.

"Remember, Viktor, you need to distract him for a couple of minutes. The rune of binding will take that long to prepare. We don't want him to escape."

"I don't want him to escape either!" Viktor shouted, brandishing the Star Dragon Sword.

"Just do your part," the Star Dragon Sword said. "Everything is in place, just trust me to strike him down when the time comes."

Viktor held the sword out in front of him, staring at the little face. "Are you trying to reassure me?"

"I'm trying to ensure that you don't go after Neclord with your teeth the moment you see him," the sword answered. "Now get in there!"

Flik held his own sword in one hand and, with Viktor's help, pushed open one of the great doors. Inside, Flik stepped to the right, scanning the first room for any sign of opposition. He was in a long corridor that ran parallel to the outer wall. Directly opposite was a magnificent tapestry of red cloth with gold stitching. Next to that was another door.

Looking back, Flik saw that the others had also entered and that Viktor was scouting further down the hall. Making eye contact with Kahn, he gestured towards the door and pantomimed opening it.

Kahn shook his head, then whispered, "I don't think he's there. My instincts tell me he's in the nave, probably by the pulpit." Flik shrugged his shoulders, having no idea what Kahn was talking about.

Walking with the others after Viktor, Flik noted an intersecting hallway, but Kahn waved him off. Viktor had come to a halt by a set of double doors that apparently opened into a large room. From the other side, Flik heard the muffled sound of a deep voice speaking. Even two years removed from his last encounter with the vampire, he recognized Neclord's voice instantly. Suddenly, Neclord was interrupted by the sound of a little girl crying. Viktor's knuckles went white around the Star Dragon Sword.

"Ready?" Viktor asked, looking from Riou to Nanami to Flik.

"Yes," Riou said. Flik simply nodded.

Viktor surged forward, more pushing the doors aside by brute force than opening them. Flik followed hard on Viktor's heels, stepping to one side to get a clear view of the room. His eyes glanced briefly over wooden pews, a raised altar, and a massive stained glass window before settling on Neclord.

The vampire was turning, his mouth curled in a frown at the interruption. His skin, the little Flik could see on his face and hands, was ghastly and pale. His mouth and red eyes were sunken; his sharp nose was prominent. In contrast to his body, Neclord's clothing was opulent. His black cape, with its huge collars, swept just above the floor as he faced them, and Flik could see blood red lining of the interior. His pants, coat, and upturned dress shoes were all black too, though he had a white ruffle hiding his neck.

For an instant, Flik thought Viktor was going to throw himself right at Neclord, but Viktor arrested his charge. He stood several feet away from the vampire, in between the two rows of pews, brandishing the Star Dragon Sword. "Sorry to break up your little party, Neclord," Viktor bantered.

Neclord's lips twitched, then held an insincere smile. He spread his hands, almost a gesture of welcome. "Viktor, my old friend, you do arrive at the most inopportune moments. My golem was obviously not enough to detain you."

Behind Neclord, a little girl cried out, "Let me go back to my father! I don't want to marry this creep!" Flik, who was standing behind the very last pews, stepped further to the side, allowing him to see Neclord's two captives. One was a little girl with brown hair and a green dress, obviously Lilly, Gustav's daughter. The other was an older woman in a purple robe and green pants, standing protectively between Lilly and Neclord.

"Catch you at a bad time?" Viktor laughed. "What is this, bride number seventy? I know you like them young, but isn't this going a bit far?"

Neclord's smile faltered and his hands curled into fists, but his tone remained smooth. "Only you would be so vulgar, Viktor. I am immortal; I have all the time in the world to train her so that she grows up into a refined lady, capable of servicing all of my desires." His smile bared his fangs; his tongue slid across his teeth.

"You're disgusting!" Nanami shouted, standing with her brother off to Flik's left, behind the other set of pews. "Viktor, kill this creep!"

"All in good time," Viktor said. "I don't want this over with too quickly. Just thinking about it gives me the shivers." True to his word, his body did seem to be shaking.

"We've done this before," Neclord replied, still calm, though he was beginning to back away from Viktor. "Do you really think you can destroy me with that blunt sword of yours?"

The Star Dragon Sword jerked Viktor forward, its deep voice booming, "Foul, misbegotten creature, the penalty for taunting me shall be harsh! I'll scour you down to the depths of your black soul!"

Neclord backed up another step. Viktor took another step forward, shouting, "That's the way! Tell him, Star Dragon Sword!"

Flik kept moving to the right, coming up against the wall of the chamber, where there was a clear path forward. He moved up, trying to get to the vampire's side. Across the way, Riou and Nanami were also walking down the far aisle.

Neclord growled and stopped retreating, his steps having carried him to the first row of pews. His eyes took in Riou, then Flik, then Viktor. His mouth turned back up into a grin. "Viktor, truly I thank you for bringing so many powerful people here with you. I regret that we must cut our acquaintanceship short, but do not fear, for I shall make good use of your corpses, after I separate your souls from them."

Viktor shook the Star Dragon Sword at Neclord. "Do you know what I'm going to do to you? I'll make sure you can never make that stupid grin, ever again!"

At that moment, everything changed. Unexpectedly, Marlowe and Koyu appeared from somewhere behind the altar and began waving frantically, trying to catch the attention of the two women. Flik felt the muscles in his face tense, trying not to give anything away to Neclord, whose back was to this new development.

Viktor, too, realized he needed to play for time. "I'll kill you!" he shouted. "And then I'll take this sword and chop you up! And grind you up!" The older woman noticed the two would-be rescuers and motioned Lilly to silence. "Dry you in the sun!" Viktor continued, his voice growing louder and louder. "Break you to pieces! Bury you in the ground! Piss on you!"

Nanami snickered. Neclord scowled. Lilly and the other woman reached Marlowe and Koyu. Viktor threw more abuse at Neclord, really getting into it. "Then I'll dig you up! Pull you! Stretch you! Drag you around! And then, and then-" his voice nearly gave "-in any case, I'll never forgive you!"

"How very quaint." Neclord sighed, rubbing his forehead. "You are a vulgar man, Viktor, one who fails to plan ahead. For example, you seem to have forgotten that I have two hostages." He half turned, swinging his back arm to gesture towards the altar. Koyu and Marlowe, plus Lilly and the other woman, were ducking behind the curtains in the back.

"What is this?" Neclord hissed. "Damn you!" He hurled a ball of lightning towards the back of the room, but it burst in midair after travelling only a couple of feet. The floor around Neclord shined with arcane symbols that described a circle with a diameter of a couple yards. Neclord whirled back on Viktor, his eyes wide, his mouth moving spasmodically. "How do you…know such magic?"

Kahn entered the room clapping his hands and smiling. He walked down the main aisle to stand behind Viktor. "That was an excellent performance, and it seems the hostages are safe too. Everything is now in place."

"Damn Marley! I should've hunted your clan to its last member!" In his anger, Neclord flung another lightning ball, this time towards Kahn. This attack was as harmless as the first, faltering against the barrier.

"My family has researched this spell for generations," Kahn spoke. "We've spent our fortune for this one moment. I have you trapped here, Neclord, and your phase magic cannot help you."

Neclord shrank back from Kahn's gaze, then gathered himself and stood straight, holding out his right hand. "You-you do not scare me, mortal! Your barrier is nothing compared to the power of the Blue Moon Rune." The rune on his hand began to glow, a blue crescent that was painful for Flik to look at. He had to turn his head. Neclord began to chant. "Oh Blue Moon, your only desire is to annihilate the sorrows of the living! To you I offer the blood of one hundred men, the souls of one hundred men-"

Another voice replied, "Seal and put to rest for a while your awesome power. I, whom you first chose, entreat you."

The light of the Blue Moon Rune faded, leaving Neclord holding his hand out, a shocked expression on his face. Even so, he composed himself quickly. "Elder Sierra, this is a surprise. I see that Rean failed to kill you."

Sierra also walked down the center aisle. She and Kahn moved around and behind Neclord, so that the two of them and Viktor formed a triangle around the vampire. "Give me back the Blue Moon Rune that you took from me four hundred years ago," she demanded. "I will not have this curse spread any further."

"It's my turn to speak," Viktor interjected. "Hey, Neclord, there's nowhere for you to run. You don't have your power and you can't get to your doubles. When I hit you with this sword, you're going to die." He let out a long sigh, a happy smile on his face. "I've waited forever for this moment."

Neclord seemed to weigh those words as he turned to look at Kahn, Sierra, and back to Viktor. "All of you…you're nothing but scum! I'm not going to be killed here! I plan to live forever! Me! Me!" His voice broke at the end, and his eyes were wild. The air around him crackled with energy, building to a sudden explosion.

Flik hurtled the nearest pew, watching as Kahn was blown backwards off his feet and Sierra disappeared into mist. The concussion rocked the church, shattering the stained glass above the altar. Shards of glass rained down as Viktor stepped in towards Neclord, stabbing with the Star Dragon Sword. The vampire skillfully stepped aside, raking at Viktor with nails that were as sharp as claws.

Flik jumped another pew and found himself within the magic circle. He aimed a short blast of lightning at Neclord, which he seemed to deflect off his cape. Neclord hissed at him in reply, raised his hands, and the pews around Flik exploded into splinters. Flik hit the stone floor hard, groaning from dozens of pinpricks in his legs. He wanted to get up, but found that he couldn't.

Viktor and Neclord continued to duel, their faces locked in matching snarls. Thus far, none of Viktor's blows had struck, but the vampire had scored several bleeding gashes on Viktor's face and arms. Flik tried again to regain his feet, but his legs wouldn't work.

A hand reached down to touch him on the back. "Don't worry," Riou said. "I've got you." There was a flash of white light and the pain was gone. Flik kicked out spasmodically and jumped up to his feet, even before he could fully see. Viktor too had been healed, leaving only dried blood on his skin.

Neclord dodged another strike and snarled at Riou. "You think to bring an end to me, runebearer! I won't allow it! I am the world!" Blue fire crackled at his fingertips. With a gesture, he cast a beam of fire towards Riou and Flik.

Nanami stepped between her brother and the fire, hands held wide. A curtain of mist seemed to descend in front of her and, though it looked insubstantial, the fire could not penetrate, hissing with impotent fury as it splashed against the veil. "Nobody will hurt my brother!" Nanami shouted.

"Scum, all of you!" Neclord screamed. Despite his words, he was looking worried. He dodged another of Viktor's strikes, then transformed into a black bat and lifted up into the air. For a moment, it looked as though he might escape by rising straight up, but then the circle of magic sparked and the bat reeled away, falling slowly back towards the ground.

Kahn was back on his feet, dusting himself off. "He won't escape that way, I'm sure of it. My grandfather crafted this spell and my father passed it to me. It won't fail."

Neclord returned to his human form and backed away from Viktor, until he came up against the far edge of the circle, where he fell to his knees, exhausted. "Elder Sierra, please! Get me out of this! I'm your child, your creation!"

Sierra walked forward from the altar, holding up a hand to forestall Viktor. "Give me back the Rune, and do it quickly."

Neclord looked down at his hand and up at Viktor's eyes. There was panic in his voice. "Of course, yes, whatever you want!" The blue crescent of the Rune hung in midair over Neclord momentarily, then descended on Sierra.

She held up her right hand to inspect it. "Finally, I can lift the curse."

"What about him?" Viktor asked, pointing his sword at Neclord.

"Please, Elder Sierra, show me mercy!" Neclord squealed.

Sierra regarded Neclord coolly. "I offered you an escape from all your sorrows. I offered you an unending life without pain or suffering. It wasn't enough for you, was it? Instead, you desired more power. Tell me, Neclord, did the Blue Moon sate that desire? Are you satisfied?"

"I just wanted to keep living!" Neclord pleaded.

"Yet you sent so many, vampire and human, to their deaths," Sierra replied.

For one long moment, Neclord looked like he was trying to understand, but then he shook his head. "I just…I just wanted to ensure that I'd…that I'd…keep living."

"You tried to save your life, and now you shall lose it. Rather, you should've given up your life, and I would've saved it." Sierra turned her back on Neclord. "I am done here, Viktor. Do what you came to do."

"You killed my family, my friends, and everyone that was important to me," Viktor spoke, advancing on Neclord. "That's not all. You've trampled on the lives of many times that number. I'm tired of listening to you beg for your life." Viktor held his sword at the ready, paused momentarily, and added, "Hey, Star Dragon Sword, you got anything to add?"

Neclord struggled to get up, more lightning crackling between his fingertips. His voice was a high and frantic. "I'm not going to let you kill me! I'm going to live!"

The Star Dragon Sword flashed through the air, cutting cleanly through Neclord's neck. "Die, vampire!" the sword commanded. The body began to shrivel even as it collapsed, skin blistering away to bones, and bones to dust. All that remained of the vampire was his black clothes.

Viktor prodded the remains with toe of his boots. "What a boor. Even in death, he couldn't clean up after himself."

"It's done," Kahn whispered, holding his beret in his hands. He looked exhausted, but then, they all looked exhausted to Flik. Suddenly, Flik felt exhausted too. He staggered back to the nearest undamaged pew and sat down. Riou and Nanami sat down next to him, leaning on him from either side.

"I'm satisfied," Sierra declared. "Remember to hold up your end of the agreement."

Viktor was still pushing the clothes around with his boot, but he looked up at Sierra and replied, without enthusiasm, "Yeah, I will."

"What's the matter?" the Star Dragon Sword asked. "Was your revenge not good enough for you? Should we have made him suffer more?"

"Bah. Find me something to burn this garbage with." He turned away from the clothes and wandered over towards Flik. "I guess I just want to wipe away all traces of him. Even so, I can't bring his victims back from the dead."

Flik looked up through the hole where the stained glass had been. The sky was rapidly turning to dusk. "At least you've stopped him from taking any more. I think that's all we can really do, in the end."

Viktor took one last look over his shoulder, as if reassuring himself that Neclord was dead. "I guess there isn't anything more to do here. Let's go back and see about getting some food and rest." He laughed. "I bet Riou and Nanami are looking forward to that too.

They didn't reply. They'd both fallen asleep, pressed up against Flik's shoulders. He yawned, wondering how he'd move them without waking them. He yawned again, closed his eyes, and found that he was too tired to care much about moving, them or him.


	78. Chapter 78 Why You Have a Staff

**Chapter 78 – Why You Have a Staff**

_In Solis 460, Soulsdei, the 8__th__ of Heptamen:_

_Dear Diary,_

_I've been too exhausted to write much lately. I was in bed for nearly two full days after we killed Neclord, so I wasn't privy to any of the negotiating going on. Apparently Shu arrived the afternoon after Tinto was liberated and started working on the deal. Georg Prime will be given command of the contingent from Tinto. Also, Jess and Hauser have decided to join us, so the New State Army will emerge from this adventure stronger all around._

_I haven't had time to speak much with Viktor. He's been very subdued since the fight, and I don't know whether he's trying to absorb the reality of it or if there is something deeper going on. His desire to kill Neclord predates my knowing him. Maybe his wanderlust has finally been satisfied now that the vampire is dead._

_We left Tinto City two days ago and are now back in the village of Tigermouth. The residents will be glad to see us leave, I think. Even now, they believe that we brought this trouble to them. Well, in a way, I'm glad to leave them behind too. Now we must turn our attention back to liberating the rest of Jowston and trying to end this war._

Hours later, Flik was riding eastward, near the head of his cavalry, with the rest of the army trailed out behind him. The pace was easy since there was no pressing need to race to anyone's rescue. The day was pleasant, so much that Flik wondered if he was dragging the cool air of Tinto down onto the plains. The only thing breaking his good mood was the incessant questions.

"So then, after that, what did Neclord say?"

The questioner was Marlowe, who'd been promoted in the aftermath of Neclord's death and attached to the army as Gustav's representative. Flik had been mildly amused watching as the young man attempted to stay in the saddle while wearing his dress gown. He obviously had little experience with horses and was settling into a vaguely sidesaddle position. Flik was less amused that he'd become the target of this man's quest to document the whole Neclord incident.

"I don't really remember," Flik answered, not making eye contact. "He said something about not dying there." He shook his head. "I was more worried about what Neclord was going to do, not what he was saying."

"That's very interesting," Marlowe replied. "You see, Viktor said Neclord shouted 'scum!' and Kahn said that Neclord talked about living forever. Very interesting indeed. Well, what happened next?"

Flik wanted to tell Marlowe to go bother someone else. He was just too polite to utter those words. "Neclord attacked us then."

"Yes, yes, I know that." Marlowe sounded annoyed. "How exactly did Neclord attack?"

"I don't really remember. It's all kind of hazy at that point." The worst part about the answer was that it was entirely true. Flik had no clear recollection of the battle from the moment it started until Neclord began begging for his life.

"Were you hurt?" This was Nina, who was riding on Flik's other side. She'd started pestering Flik for details the instant he'd returned to Drakemouth and reunited with his men. He'd offered her none then and he had the suspicion that she'd turned Marlowe's attention his way just to get the details.

More than that, her particular question triggered a buzzing sensation in his legs. It wasn't painful. It was more like thousands of light pinpoints pricking down on his skin. He had been hurt. He'd been hurt pretty badly, but Riou had healed him. What would've happened had Riou not been there? It wasn't a question worth dwelling on, but the thought sent a cold chill down his spine.

"I got a little beat up, but Riou healed me. It wasn't really important."

Nina frowned, and Flik knew that his words hadn't reassured her. Meanwhile, Marlowe continued with his questioning. "Right, so when is your next clear memory? When did you know that Neclord was defeated?"

Flik sighed and steeled himself for more hours in Marlowe's company. Eventually Marlowe was either satisfied or ran out of patience, and he turned his horse around to ride back towards the middle of the column. Nina remained up with Flik, but she decided not to ask any other questions, which was a relief.

Later in the afternoon, with the forests and marshes to the east a green smudge on the horizon, Flik sent out his scouts to find an appropriate camping ground for the night. This was easier said than done, for the addition of the Tinto forces made the marching column nearly ten thousand men strong. Still, a well-watered location was found, and Flik and his men spent the late afternoon guiding individual units into the growing camp.

Amidst the bustle, Flik had time to look up and notice a Winger gliding down out of the sky, heading for the center of the camp. Flik briefly wondered what message he might be bringing, but then focused on more pressing matters, like making sure the horses were properly tethered. He'd almost forgotten the Winger entirely when one of Shu's aides appeared, calling his name.

Flik turned his horse around as the man ran up. "I'm here. What can I help you with?" In truth, setting up the camp was boring work, but an unexpected disaster might portend more excitement than Flik wanted.

The aide bowed, but kept his tone low, "Lord Riou desires to speak with you urgently."

Flik fought the frown off his face. He had no sense that something had gone wrong, but his soldier's instincts told him to worry. "Take me to him."

He followed the aide towards the center of the camp, where Shu had set up the large administrative tents. When he was led into the nearest one, it didn't surprise him that Riou, Nanami, and Shu were waiting for him. What did surprise him was that they had all of their personal effects packed up. They all looked worried, particularly Shu, who was frowning.

"What's going on?" Flik asked. His heart rate was picking up. He could hear the tension in his voice.

"We're going back to Dunan Castle immediately," Shu announced. "Our scouts have learned that the Highland Army has decamped from Muse and is on the move. I need to be able to assess the threat and plan the appropriate countermeasures, which I obviously cannot do from here."

"You're going to ride back to Dunan through the night?" Flik shook his head. "Isn't that a little dangerous, Shu? Wouldn't it be better to wait until daylight to push your horse?"

Shu smiled grimly. "I intend to be back in Dunan tonight, not tomorrow or the day after. We can't afford to let the Highlanders get that many marches ahead of us."

Flik was momentarily stunned by the absurdity of Shu's comment. "How are you going to?" Then he remembered that the idea wasn't so absurd. Riou was holding two things in his hands: a bound scroll and a small mirror. Flik recognized the mirror; it was one part of the Blinking Mirror. With it, Riou and a small number of companions could teleport instantly back to Dunan Castle.

"I get it." Flik nodded to Riou. "You're going to take Shu back." His eyes suddenly widened in alarm. "Who's going to be in charge of this army?"

"You," Riou answered. He stepped forward and presented Flik with the scroll. "Here are your official orders, signed by me and Shu. I know you'll do a good job, Flik."

With all eyes on him, Flik couldn't show any hesitation, though he regarded the scroll as if it were a burning coal. As he accepted the commission, he took a deep breath, almost feeling the weight settling on his shoulders. He'd commanded military units for many years, but he'd never been entrusted with an army before. Belatedly he realized that Shu was speaking.

"-make full use of my staff to help you organize the march. I need you to get these men to Dunan Castle with all possible speed, hopefully within two days. Depending on how circumstances develop, it is possible that the rest of the New State Army will be in the field at that time. If so, there will be orders regarding your deployment waiting for you when you arrive. I will attempt to keep in communication by sending members of the Winghorde to you on a daily basis." Shu paused, then stuck out his hand. "Good luck, Flik."

Flik was still very numb. He accepted Shu's handshake mechanically. When that was done, Shu turned back to Riou and said, "Let's be on our way."

Riou held up the Blinking Mirror. Flik had seen the tool in use before, but never when he wasn't one of the people being transported. He braced himself for a flash of light, but there was none. Instead, Riou, Nanami, and Shu simply vanished. Flik blinked a couple of times to confirm it, half expecting them to still be there. They weren't. He was alone in the room.

He wasn't alone in the tent. Beyond another partition, someone coughed. Flik could hear scribbling too, and people moving about. Ignoring that, he undid the string binding his orders and studied them. There wasn't much more to them than what Shu had said. He looked over the words a couple more times. He felt he ought to do something, but he had no idea what it was.

When Flik finally set down the papers, he saw that someone had entered the room. He was short, stout, and had thinning brown hair. He was watching Flik patiently, as if expecting an order, making him feel uncomfortable. One of Shu's clerks, Flik decided. The knowledge didn't help Flik any, so he swallowed his nervousness and asked, "May I help you with something?"

The clerk bobbed his head. "Begging your pardon, General Flik, but I was just about to send runners to summon the captains. With your permission, of course."

Flik tried to make his mind work. Why would he want to summon the other captains? His eyes drifted back to his orders, lying on the table where he'd placed them. Of course, he had to tell them that he was now in charge. "Go ahead," Flik replied.

The clerk nodded. "As you say, general." He disappeared beyond a partition. A moment later, four younger men dashed out of the tent, each heading in a different direction.

While waiting, Flik mentally went over what he was going to say to the captains. He hadn't decided on anything when Viktor suddenly said, "What's up, Flik? Where's Riou at?"

A sharp spike of surprise ran up Flik's spine. Viktor had been the first to arrive, and was wearing a look halfway between concern and jocularity. Flik sighed and let himself relax slightly. "He and Shu had to leave; Highland's up to something and Shu wanted to be back at the castle. They've left me in charge." He gestured to the orders. Viktor picked them up and scanned them.

While Viktor was going over the orders, the other captains arrived. Georg Prime radiated the easy professionalism of a soldier who'd seen countless campaigns, while Gijimu still looked the part of the wild man of the mountains. Last to appear was Ridley, though this was excusable, as he continued to limp from his injuries. When they were all gathered, Flik quickly explained the situation. No one had any complaints; no one challenged Flik's right to lead.

After hearing the status reports from each of the four men, Flik dismissed them. Viktor hung back as the others left, a huge grin on his face. "Congratulations, Flik! Looks like Shu's got big plans for you."

Flik shook his head. "I hope not. I don't want all this responsibility. I just want to get these men to Dunan and be done with it." Bending over, he placed his hands on either side of the table, staring at Shu's orders, which lay on top of it.

Viktor walked up next to Flik, catching his attention. "He trusts you, Flik," he said seriously. "I trust you. The army's getting bigger. Neither Riou nor Shu can be everywhere at once. They're going to need generals to help them, people who can take independent command at a moment's notice."

Flik stood up and paced away from the table, keeping his face away from Viktor. "I'm not sure I'm cut out for it, though. Remember what happened the last time I tried to lead an army?"

Viktor put his hand gently on Flik's shoulder. "Don't worry about Scarleticia. You won't make that kind of mistake again. Just focus on bringing our men home, that's all."

"Yeah." Flik nodded, feeling more sure of himself. "That's what Odessa would say too; accomplish the task at hand."

Viktor turned to go, waving as he did so. "That's the attitude." He stood in the flap, framed by the hazy light of a campfire. When he spoke again, his tone was serious. "Also, if you ever, ever ask me to call you 'sir,' I'll make sure to beat the swelling out of your head. Got it?"

Flik laughed. "I hear you." Viktor chuckled and walked away, presumably for bed.

Flik might've done so as well, but as soon as Viktor was gone, the little clerk reappeared. As before, he didn't speak first, but stood there, waiting for Flik's acknowledgement. "Is there something else I need to do?"

The clerk's tone was polite but firm. "I was thinking that you will need to make an arrangement for your own company. Somebody will need to lead your men while you lead the army."

Flik almost countered that he could lead both at once, but he knew better. Even so, it felt as though he were giving up a cherished possession as he said, "Get me Rossgard. If anyone deserves it, it's him."

By the time Rossgard arrived, news of Flik's promotion had spread throughout the camp. When the senior sergeant entered, a small crowd of Flik's men hung back, beyond the entrance to the tent. Rossgard took his own promotion stoically, but cracked a smile when Flik concluded, "Don't get too used to it. I'll be back with you guys in a couple of days."

When Rossgard left, most of the crowd followed him, but Tengaar, Hix, and Nina remained behind. Flik understood their reason. They followed him, not his unit. In a way, he was relieved, because he knew he'd need some aides he trusted. With a smile, he said, "Collect your stuff and come back here. I'll need the three of you with me." He shrugged his shoulders tiredly. "And if you could get my stuff too. Somehow I don't think I'm going to have the time to get back to my own tent."

Both Tengaar and Nina looked relieved by his answer, but it was Hix who answered for them, "Thank you, Sir Flik. We're all very happy for you." He and the two girls left, full of high spirits.

When they were gone, Flik sank back into a folding chair and closed his eyes. "I'm not being roped into this," he whispered to himself. "It's only temporary. I'll be back leading my men in no time at all." There was a rustling of papers behind him. Without stirring, Flik irritably asked, "What do you want?" He regretted the tone instantly. Quickly standing up, Flik opened his eyes, faced the clerk and apologized. "I'm sorry. It's been a long day."

The clerk was carrying a thick stack of papers, but somehow managed to pull off a respectable bow. "There is nothing to apologize for, General Flik. I understand how difficult it is to have an unexpected responsibility thrust upon you in a matter of hours." He placed the papers on the table with an audible thunk. "These are the movement orders that the clerks have written up for tomorrow. Please go over them and see if they are to your liking."

Flik leafed through the first couple of pages. As a unit commander, he'd been on the receiving end of these during his previous campaigns, so he generally knew what to look for. He heard the clerk bustling about, and then the room filled with artificial light. Flik glanced up to see him fiddling with an oil lamp. "You know, I never did catch your name," Flik spoke.

"The name is Kuno, General Flik." He sketched out a brief bow, offering no other information.

Rubbing at the headache forming between his eyes, Flik said, "Just call me sir, if you must. There's no need to get pretentious about my rank."

"As you wish, sir."

When Flik was done with the papers, he was finally able to go to bed. He felt uncomfortable sleeping in either Shu or Riou's bed, so Kuno had a cot brought out for him. As he lay back, trying to ignore his headache, he could hear at least some of the clerks continuing their work in the next room.

Morning brought its own series of tribulations to Flik. He awoke and promptly forgot where he was. He stumbled around for a few moments, wondering why his tent had gotten so large overnight. Then he remembered where he was and what he was supposed to do. To his frustration, he found that there was really very little he could do to speed things along.

"I want to be with my men," Flik mumbled around a piece of toast.

Kuno coughed discretely. "I'm sure we can trust Rossgard to do his job well. That's why you put him in the position, yes?"

Flik grimaced and took a drink of coffee – one of the perks of generalship – before continuing the conversation. "They're still my men. I'm not going to stop thinking of them that way."

"Well, if that's the way the general feels about it, I'm sure we can find some time to ride with them during the march. Of course, you will want to inspect all of the units. It wouldn't do for you to monopolize your time with just one unit."

"I suppose I'm up for a lot of riding," Flik answered, but he was smiling. He wasn't ever going to become the sort of general who'd spend his days sitting behind a desk.

Thus, when the army was ready to break camp, Flik was on his horse at the head of his men. He was tempted to draw his sword and give the command, but he restrained himself and nodded to Rossgard.

"Deploy scouts and flankers!" Rossgard ordered. Men and horses began to move. The first line of cavalry started down the road at a trot, fanning out in front of the army. Rossgard drew his sword to give the second command. "Forward at a walk! Look smart for the general!"

The mercenaries responded by drawing their swords in a glittering wave and giving Flik a cheer as they rode by him. Flik felt his heart surge seeing the pride in their faces. Even though most of them were men who hadn't been present at the start of the war, he still felt attached to them. He felt his eyes watering and ducked his head briefly to wipe at his face. All the dust the horses were kicking up must've been getting to him.

When his men were past, Viktor strode forward at the head of a long line of infantry. "We're not going to be outdone by some wimpy cavalry, are we?" Viktor roared. "Let's hear it! Give the general a cheer!" The infantry pumped their spears in the morning sun, shouting loudly enough to drown out Viktor's laughter, but Flik could see his friend's mirth.

Whether by design or complete spontaneity, Georg Prime also exhorted his men in a loud voice, saying, "Let them hear this army coming from Dunan! Let them hear your voices in Highland, men!" Finally Gijimu appeared, no less eager to pick up the challenge. "Shout, men of Tinto!" the former bandit commanded, brandishing an axe. "No man's got stronger lungs than a Tinto man! Let the general hear it!"

When all were past and all that remained were the teamsters and handlers for the supply train, Flik rubbed his ears and turned to Kuno. "I'm tempted to think that Viktor put them all up to this. What now?"

The little man looked somewhat ridiculous mounted on a shaggy pony, but he was also seriousness as he answered, "If you so desire, sir, you may ride up alongside the men for a while. I don't anticipate that there will be any major problems immediately."

"You think we'll run into trouble?"

Kuno quirked an eyebrow. "There is always something, sir. That's why you have a staff."

It wasn't long before that prediction came true. The road quickly descended down into the forests and swamps of eastern Two Rivers. When Flik had marched his men west to Riou's aid, the way had been dry and dusty. In the interim, a storm had come along, and now thousands of tiny rivulets crossed the road, turning it into a muddy stew.

Soon enough, the legs of Flik's horse were covered with mud, not to mention his own legs. At least he was mounted. He spent much of the day watching the thousands of infantry slogging their way forward. When the temperature and humidity rose in the afternoon, men started falling out of the column.

There was also a steady stream of reports from the rear of the column. Supply wagons were sticking in the muck, some of them breaking axles. Flik rode back to find twenty Tinto men manhandling one off the road. It tumbled down into a ditch, coming to rest on its side in the midst of a clump of cattails. Meanwhile, Kuno sent out runners to call in the wainwrights to repair the wagons that could be salvaged.

Late in the afternoon, as they were riding towards the head of the column, Flik leaned over towards Kuno and said, "You know, I feel like I haven't really done anything. It seems like you're the one taking care of all the problems."

Kuno shrugged. "Begging your pardon, sir, but it wouldn't be wise to bog you down with decisions that can be easily made. Rest assured that when something of major import comes along, I will refer it to your judgement."

As if on cue, someone down the line started shouting, "General Flik! General Flik!" Flik looked up in time to see one of the scouts riding towards him, his horse kicking up clods of mud.

Flik dodged one such clod and replied, "I'm here. What's the matter?"

The messenger saluted and gave his report. "The scouts have reached the bridge over the Granias. It is blocked against us!"

The muscles around Flik's stomach contracted in a spike of fear. He started to guide his horse forward. The messenger, Kuno, and the rest of his staff fell in behind him. "Is it the Highland Army?" Flik asked. "What are their numbers?"

The messenger hesitated and Flik glanced over to see his embarrassed expression. "It's just one, General." Flik snapped his head further around, but before he could say anything, the messenger continued, "You'll understand when you see him! He's this huge black knight, with spikes and horns, and that voice!" The scout shivered before resuming in a hushed tone. "General, if I didn't know better, I'd say that the Blade of Order stood before the entire army. The wind didn't even touch his cape!"

Flik paused to digest the information. As there were many True Runes, there were also many images of Death. The Reaper at the Last Harvest and the Confessor of Souls with his deep cowl were two of them. The Blade of Order was another personification, Death's dark knight with his crimson blade. Legends spoke of meeting him at crossroads and bridges, abandoned castles and deep caverns. Wherever met, he was relentless in pursuit, never abandoning his quarry. Some legends told of thwarting him by placing a silver shield over the lintel of a house's entrance.

Shaking his head, Flik urged his horse forward again. Blade of Order or not, the description was familiar to him, especially the bit about the cape not moving. It stirred memories of two years ago. "I'll meet with him," Flik declared.

They trotted onward, passing the mass of men struggling through the mud, and came in sight of the Granias and the viaduct over it. The river was running faster as a result of the rains, the water foaming as it flowed around the arches of the bridge. Rossgard had formed up the scouts at the foot of the bridge. The men looked tense, but ready for action if commanded to fight. The black knight waited patiently a hundred yards down the span.

Rossgard looked almost sheepish as Flik approached. "It seems a little silly, an army being stopped by only a single man. Give the order and we will sweep him off the bridge." He glanced nervously towards the black knight. "Still, if we could resolve things peacefully, that would be better for us all, I think."

Flik also watched the knight. "Has he done or said anything?"

"When I arrived, I rode a bit out onto the bridge. The knight spoke these words to me: 'If you dread not the embrace of death, come forward and stand before me.'" Rossgard shook his head. "I've ridden beside you into battle many times, Sir Flik, but I can't say that I wanted to go any further after hearing those words."

"I'll go up there," Flik replied. "Somebody's got to find out what he wants, or else this whole army's going to be stuck in place." He started his horse forward. After a moment's delay, Rossgard followed him up onto the bridge.

The dark knight was just as he'd been described. He was encased in heavy black armor with a spike on each shoulder and a pair of sharp red horns on the helmet. The visor was partly down, obscuring his eyes, but leaving his nose and bare chin visible. Both he and his gray horse were huge. Flik guessed that the dark knight was easily a head taller than he was. As Flik got closer, he could feel a sense of foreboding rising in him. It seemed to radiate out from the dark knight, like heat shimmers off a road. Rossgard's horse began to whinny and dance, falling further behind Flik.

Flik and Rossgard approached to within thirty yards when the knight's helmet abruptly shifted, focusing fully on the two of them. His mouth moved and he spoke in a voice that turned the fine summer day chilly. "If you dread not the embrace of death, come forward and stand before me."

"Pesmerga, is that you?" Flik asked. This man, or someone very much like him, had served in the Liberation Army two years ago. Come to think of it, Flik wasn't sure that Pesmerga was human. He swallowed and urged his horse forward once again.

The black knight reached down, pulling a large broadsword free of its scabbard. It was almost a relief to see that the blade wasn't blood red. Still, Flik drew his own sword. "Pesmerga, what are you doing here?"

A blade clattered to the ground behind Flik. He turned slightly, trying to keep Pesmerga in his line of sight while looking back. Rossgard had dropped his sword and was trying to control his horse, which was bucking and kicking. After a moment, Rossgard turned his mount sideways, but didn't reach down to retrieve his weapon. Instead, he pulled his bow off his back and started stringing it. "I…I'll support you from here, Sir Flik. I may not be able to go forward, but I sure as hell won't go back!"

Flik nodded. "Cover me, in case he tries something. I'm counting on you, Rossgard." He turned his full attention back to approaching Pesmerga. It felt like he was riding into an incredible headwind, one which threatened to blow him back off his seat. Within twenty yards, his horse began to dance, stepping right and left as often as stepping forward. Flik leaned in, trying to will both himself and the animal onward.

At ten yards, he could go no farther. He was close enough to see just the hint of red from one of Pesmerga's eyes before the dark knight shifted his head. Pesmerga's mouth opened again, his voice forming a question this time. "Do you serve the one who must overturn the old to make way for the new?"

Flik could detect no sign that Pesmerga recognized him. He swallowed several times, finding his voice, and answered as best he could. "I serve Lord Riou, leader of the New State Army. We're fighting against-"

Pesmerga cut him off, this time with a command. "I wish to meet with Lord Riou. Take me to him."

Flik's horse started dancing again, turning almost completely away before Flik mastered him. "Lord Riou isn't here," Flik said over his shoulder. "He's gone ahead to Dunan Castle." He pointed off to the north, on the east bank of the river.

Pesmerga's helmet slowly came around, making no noise, until he was looking where Flik was pointing. "I shall meet with him, for we share a common enemy." He started to turn his horse, but then both he and his mount disappeared, as if they had become like the edge of a piece of paper and had slipped between the rays of light.

Flik shook himself, recovering his bearings. Rossgard was riding towards him, regarding him apprehensively. "What should we do about…that?" he asked.

"I don't think there is much we can do about Pesmerga, if that's who he was. I only hope I made the right decision in telling him where Riou is." Flik wiped his forehead; he was covered in sweat, though a minute ago he'd felt like he was shaking with chills. "Get your men across the river, Rossgard. We'll camp on the other side this night."

Rossgard saluted. "Yes, sir!"

Flik was still mounted in the middle of the bridge, watching as the scouts flowed by him, when Kuno and the rest of the staff caught up to him. When the little man was within earshot, Flik smiled and said, "I suppose that was one of those major decisions that only I can make, right?"

Kuno dabbed his head with a handkerchief before answering, "Well, I'm not sure that we have anyone on staff who could've handled that level of trouble."


	79. Chapter 79 When He Needed to Think

**Chapter 79 – When He Needed to Think**

Flik and his men broke camp early in the morning, eager to be back to Dunan and find out what was happening with the Highland Army. They made good time down the road to the castle and Flik was soon leading his men through the walls and past houses and shops, heading for the barracks. The streets felt even more crowded than usual, with wagons, soldiers, and civilians all moving at a feverish pace. Even after returning to the castle, Flik could feel the mood. Climbing the stairs alongside Viktor, he glanced out one of the widows facing the lake. The harbor was filled with galleys, both large transports and smaller battle craft.

"Looks like this is going to be a big one," Viktor commented, looking out the next window down.

"They sure do like to keep us busy," Flik responded. "What I wouldn't give for about a month to rest in my own bed."

Viktor laughed. "You take what you can get, that's all. Let's see what Shu has to say about your performance."

Flik gulped. Though he knew he'd fulfilled Shu's orders, he was still nervous about Pesmerga. If that had, in fact, been Pesmerga. Had he made the right decision in pointing the dark knight towards Riou? As they reached the top of the stairs, Flik found that he had no more time to worry. Oulan stood in front of the meeting room, arms crossed, checking the two generals over with her eyes. With a nod, she gestured for them to enter.

Inside was an unexpectedly large crowd. While people like Ridley, Kiba, and Klaus could be expected for a regular briefing, others, like Valeria, Freed, and Gilbert were not normal attendees. In fact, it looked like every major officer in the army was present. Flik felt his heart sink. If he was going to be rebuked, he didn't want it to be in front of everyone.

Flik's eyes glanced up towards the dais, where Riou, Nanami, and Shu waited patiently. His eyes met Shu's; there was a slight smile on the strategist's face. "I wanted to commend you for bringing the army home in such a timely fashion. Now that the forces of the New State Army are finally concentrated, we can strike at Highland on equal terms."

Hearing the praise, Flik had to suppress the reflex to wipe at his forehead. Viktor gave him a friendly, but none too gentle, thump on the back. He recovered in time to hear Georg Prime voice a concern.

"If I may, strategist, there was some concern about the intentions of the Highland Army when you and Riou departed. Has that been cleared up?"

It was Apple who answered the question, after glancing at Shu. "Their moves appear to be highly contradictory. Tai Ho and Amada have discovered that they've pulled almost all their soldiers off the coast. We surmise that they are concentrating north of Muse City."

"It could be preparatory to a new offensive," Klaus added. "It might also indicate that they are willing to wait and see what we'll do."

Shu cut off his two subordinate strategists with a wave of one arm. "Their ultimate aim is unimportant in the short term. Our course of action is set."

Riou walked forward next to Shu. Flik watched as his gaze settled on Lady Teresa. "The New State Army will deploy to retake Greenhill, and from there, all of Jowston."

Shin nodded, hearing the news, but Lady Teresa frowned and replied, "As much as I want my people freed, isn't Muse the more important target? It was the seat of the Alliance, after all. Besides, that is where the Highland Army is, correct? We will eventually have to defeat them to win this war."

Shu shook his head. "No. Now is not the time for the decisive battle, not on ground of Leon Silverberg's choosing." He shook his head once again, and to Flik it looked like he was trying to convince himself of his logic. Finally, he turned to Apple and said, "Explain the situation in Greenhill province, please."

Apple had also been watching Shu, and started a little at his voice. "O-Of course. We believe that the Highland Army has fewer than five thousand men in the province at the moment, though some of our spies also speak of a force of new irregulars arriving, so the exact numbers may be in doubt." Shu cleared his throat, a signal of impatience, and Apple glanced his way before continuing, "The most important fact, which we've recently learned, is that the Highland forces are under the command of a new general. Some of you may remember the name Yuber from the Liberation War of two years ago."

Around him, Flik could see his comrades from that war react to the news. Tai Ho's mouth fell open, but he quickly closed it. Max frowned. Valeria had on a thoughtful expression. During the final campaign of the last war, Yuber had summoned an army of demons to oppose the Liberation Army. The demons had only been dispelled by the work of several True Rune bearers.

"He's taken part in numerous major wars all over this continent," Apple continued. "As always, his motives are unknowable."

"Chaos," a voice interrupted. Heads turned, including Flik's, though he'd already heard the speaker before. Pesmerga, who'd appeared from seemingly nowhere, strode towards the dais, his armor making no noise. "That is his desire. He goes where he believes the most can be created and will even bind himself to humans if that furthers his cause."

"He's also a coward," Shu said tersely. "Just as in the Liberation War, he has no staying power when he's forced into an even fight. That is why you've joined us, isn't it, Pesmerga?" Pesmerga simply nodded in response. "That being the case, nothing about Yuber should cause us any trepidation. I have every confidence that this shall be a victorious campaign," Shu concluded.

As Shu stepped back from the dais, Flik was already thinking about how he'd get his mounted archers ready for the upcoming battles. Expecting a dismissal, he was surprised when Riou walked forward and spoke, "There is one further matter that we need to discuss; namely, the organization of the New State Army. As the army has become larger, it's also become more difficult to control. Therefore, at Shu's recommendation, I'm dividing the army up into a number of divisions, each under the command of a general."

The room filled with anticipation. Flik could see a gamut of emotions reflecting on the faces of his fellow commanders - from eagerness to indifference. Sheena, one of the eager ones, literally jumped forward and said, "How about me? You could make me, like, I don't know, maybe a vice-general? Even the title would be fine." He rubbed his hands together. "Man, just think how the girls would flip when I introduced myself as Vice-general Sheena." He stopped, realizing he'd voiced that last thought out loud. Without blushing, he managed to add, "You know, so I could better represent the Toran Republic."

Valeria clipped him on the shoulder, spinning him around. "You're doing a fine job of representing the Republic right where you are, in my unit, under my eye, just like your father wanted."

Sheena wilted under Valeria's glare. "Uh, yes, ma'am."

"I've already decided who the generals are going to be," Riou clarified. "General Hauser, if you would please join us on the dais." When the dark man was in place, Riou continued, "You've served Muse faithfully for many years, and managed to keep your army intact even after your city fell. I ask you to take command of the Left Division of the New State Army."

Hauser gave a crisp salute. "As you command, Lord Riou." Flik felt that Hauser was a good choice, but he was mostly focusing on mentally pleading for Riou to ignore him. He'd had one stint as a general and he really didn't want any more.

Riou looked back to the commanders. "General Kiba, you too have an established and successful career as a general. Since you joined us, you've served the New State Army loyally and well. I ask you to take command of the Right Division."

Kiba bowed and answered, "I would be my pleasure and honor, Lord Riou."

Riou spoke the next name with a smile on his lips. "General Viktor, you offered me my first position with your mercenaries. Now I offer you command of the Center Division. Everyone here knows how much you've done for Jowston over the years, so I ask you, please accept this commission."

Flik's concentration broke and his head swung around to look at Viktor. Many times he'd heard Viktor say that he'd never accept this kind of promotion. Now, he showed no hesitation as he climbed the steps of the dais, coming up to shake Riou's hand. He was smiling, but his voice was husky as he said, "Of course I'll help you, Riou. Just say the word."

With the three new generals standing alongside Riou, Shu, and Nanami, Flik dared hope that Riou was finished. It was not to be. Riou cleared his throat and, even before speaking any words, was looking right at him. "General Flik, your reputation for bravery and valor has long preceded you. However, I have seen that you are far greater than any words written about you. I ask you to accept command of the Front Division."

Flik's mind started spouting gibberish about refusing, but his eyes took in Riou and then Viktor. He set his feet in motion and, tucking all his concerns and fears away, climbed up the steps of the dais to shake Riou's hand. He said something that might have been, "I promised to stand with you, and so I will."

From the moment he stood on the dais until someone suddenly tapped him on the shoulder, everything passed in a daze. Flik shook his head and realized that the briefing was over. The crowd of generals was dispersing, heading out through the doors, and only he and Shu remained up on the dais.

"There's a strategy meeting tomorrow morning," Shu informed him softly. The strategist stepped by him and added, "Just in case you hadn't heard earlier." Then he was heading for the exit. Flik wasted no time in leaving too.

The hallway outside was clearing rapidly. Flik looked around for Viktor, but couldn't see him anywhere. That was a surprise, for he'd expected Viktor to hang around and wait for him to talk about their mutual promotions. Thinking that his friend might've wanted to unpack, Flik headed off towards Viktor's room. The door was ajar and, though his stuff was there, the room was empty. With a resigned shrug, Flik decided to walk to his room. It wasn't like Viktor was purposefully avoiding him. Probably he'd gone to bathe or eat.

As soon as he opened the door to his own room, Flik was greeted by a hiss and a flash of something orange and furry that jumped off the covers of his bed and disappeared under it. The sight startled him, but then he laughed. Carefully placing his sword and shield on the table in the center of the room, he knelt down to regard the pair of glowing eyes that were watching him.

Smiling, Flik fished around in one pocket and came up with a lump of hard cheese. He broke off a smaller piece and placed it on the floor, between the table and the bed. Before long the cat emerged, a scraggly orange tabby. The cat approached the cheese cautiously, eyeing Flik with every step forward. It sniffed the cheese, licked it, then grabbed it in its mouth and disappeared back under the bed.

The cat emerged again while Flik was checking his sword and shield for damage. This time it was a little friendlier; it came halfway across the room and mewled at him. Flik laughed and broke off another piece of cheese, which the cat immediately took back under the bed. They continued this game several more times until the cat was comfortable with Flik's presence. The cat jumped up onto the table and, purring loudly, rubbed up against Flik's arms and generally made a nuisance of itself. When Flik set it back down on the floor, it started batting at the edge of his cape.

Flik's stomach suddenly growled, sending the cat back under the bed. He laughed and mused aloud, "I wonder what I should call you, if you decide to stay." Clipping his cape back on, he left the room, though he did leave the door slightly open so the cat could get out. He swung by Viktor's room again, but no one was in. Flik walked on. Since Viktor hadn't returned, there was probably only one place where he was, and that was where Flik went.

Even from across the entrance hall, Flik could hear the noise from Leona's bar. It sounded like quite a party was in the making. When he opened the door, the patrons were just beginning the chorus on a bawdy tune. He looked around, expecting Viktor to be on top of a table, leading the revelry. To his surprise, he couldn't see his friend anywhere.

Flik walked into the bar and stepped aside as a drunken soldier staggered past him. Leona waved to him and pointed towards the back. There, at a table tucked up against the stairs, was Viktor. He wasn't alone. Flik's eyes widened as he approached and saw that Nina was there too. They were apparently in a deep conversation, for Viktor only noticed his arrival at the last moment.

"There you are, Flik!" he shouted cheerfully. He had a mug of beer in one hand and a smile on his face. "Nina and I were just talking about you."

Flik glanced at the blonde girl. She chewed on her lower lip and hopped out of her chair when Flik sat down at the table. Looking away from him, she walked over to Viktor. "Thanks for listening to me! You're a much better conversationalist than some people I know." She leaned in and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, then skipped back and quickly walked for the door.

Flik frowned as he watched her go, then turned around to find Viktor rubbing at the spot where Nina had kissed him. "What was that about?" He tried not to sound accusatory. In fact, a small part of him wondered why he was upset at all.

Viktor finished his mug before answering, "She's one of your aides, right? She wanted to know more about your habits, how you think, things like that."

"And you told her?" Now Flik did feel annoyed, not out of jealousy, but the invasion of his privacy.

Viktor gave him a big grin. "She's not going to stop, Flik, not until you definitively tell her. Maybe she'll get bored." Flik was still glaring at him. Viktor held out his hands and added, "Even if I tell her nothing, she'll still learn things. I saw her speaking with Richmond the other day."

Flik shook his head. "Maybe, but it sounds like you're supporting her in this insane quest." From somewhere, a waitress appeared with two more mugs of beer, though neither man had ordered. Viktor took a swig rather than answer, so Flik let the matter drop. Instead, he asked, "Who's Richmond?"

"You don't know? Even I've used him a couple of times."

"You're not going to tell me?"

Viktor started laughing. "It's better for someone like you to find out about that stuff on your own."

There was a commotion from the front of the bar. Flik turned his head to see what was going on. A bunch of Lampdragon bandits were getting into a shoving contest with some of the Zexen mercenaries. Flik got up, wondering how best to break this up, when a large woman got up from the Lampdragon side and started speaking. He'd seen the woman before, during the fight with Neclord. Apparently she was related to Gijimu and Koyu in some way.

"The best way to prove who can hold his liquor is to have a contest, yeah? So, how about it? Who here thinks they can drink Lo Wen under the bar?"

She cut a fierce figure, glaring as much at her own people as at the Zexens. She did not have the obvious muscles of Oulan, but she was formidable. It also helped that she'd shrugged her purple robe open to reveal some cleavage.

"A drinking contest? I'm in!" Viktor walked past Flik, smiling like a little boy. "You coming, Flik?"

"I'll pass." He sat down and watched as several others, including Ace, Rikimaru, and Anita, joined Viktor and Lo Wen at the bar. He was so focused on the contest that he didn't notice a newcomer approach him until the man sat down across from him, setting down a plate of cheesecake first.

"This seat taken?" Georg Prime asked. Flik shook his head, more because he was startled than because he was answering. The older man laughed and gestured towards the front. "If I were a little younger, I might've joined in, but I know my limits. Especially with that bandit woman in – nobody's going to beat her."

Flik watched the contest a little longer, while Georg methodically demolished his cheesecake. "I've really got to watch what I eat," Georg commented. "Wouldn't want to lose my edge because I got fat."

"Huh?" Flik asked, looking back at the older general.

Georg had a friendly smile on his face. "You remind me a little of myself when I was younger. You've got a strong sense of duty, but you're still trying to find your place. Am I right?"

Flik looked from Georg to the mug of beer on the table. He'd hardly touched it. He wasn't sure how much of his past he wanted to share with the famous general. Georg continued to sit across from him, not betraying the slightest sign of impatience. Up at the bar, Ace was already down, sprawled across the floor.

Finally, Flik answered, "I've always wanted to help people, that's all. I don't like confining myself to one place." The answer was more or else honest, though it omitted any reference to spending his life with Odessa. He didn't want to get into that with someone who was a stranger.

"I once had a friend like your friend Viktor," Georg said, gesturing to the bar. "Wherever your travels take you, don't take that bond for granted." His smile was suddenly wistful. "Appreciate your time with those who are closest to you, for it is limited, passing before your eyes." He got up from his chair, laughing once as he did so. "I must sound like an old man, right? If you're ever in need of a direction to travel, might I suggest you go south? I think you'd like Falena. If nothing else, it'd help you relax a little." He nodded and walked away, easily sidestepping Rikimaru as he toppled off of his stool.

Flik finished the rest of his mug and got up as well. Viktor was caught up in the contest, going drink for drink with the two remaining women. There wouldn't be any talking with him this night. That was fine. Flik walked out of the bar, down several corridors, and up the nearest flight of stairs. There was only one place he'd go when he needed to think.

He emerged into the cool night air awaiting him at the top of his tower. The sky was cloudless and the full Blue Moon loomed large, already well up into the sky. Its reflection rippled in the waves below. He leaned back against the roof of the tower and sighed. His thoughts went back to Georg's question. If Odessa had lived, he would've made his home with her, certainly. Yet, a part of him liked being out in the world, fighting alongside Viktor in some adventure. Hadn't he been struggling with this problem just before he found Riou?

There were steps approaching him from below. He knew who it would be, but he wasn't sure how to confront her. Nina came up at a run, but stopped at the top of the steps, almost as if unsure how to continue. Flik wondered if his silence would be enough to ward her off.

It wasn't. She let out a ragged laugh and came all the way out onto the landing, though she didn't try to get close to him. "I knew you'd be here. You always come up here to think."

Flik sighed. "I suppose so."

His evasive answer didn't put Nina off. "So, what were you thinking about?"

Flik tried to read her face. She seemed to be purposefully holding back. "I told you before. It's none of your business."

He braced himself for an outburst. Instead, Nina leaned forward and said, "I know who you're thinking about. It's that old lover of yours, Odessa, right?"

Flik stood up straight in shock, nearly slipping on one of the stones of the landing. He nearly rounded on Nina to demand how she'd learned the name, but his memories brought him the answer first. "Viktor told you this, didn't he?" His throat tightened. He was not going to be mad at Viktor, but why had his friend done this?

Refusing to answer Flik's question, Nina countered with one of her own. "You still can't get past her death, even after all this time?"

"It's not that!" Flik shook his head. Hadn't he worked this out in Lenankamp? He knew she was gone, but he didn't want Nina reminding him of the fact.

"Then why?"

Flik let out his frustrations with another sigh. He knew being evasive wasn't going to work now. Besides, maybe Nina deserved an honest answer. "Odessa was more than a lover to me." He turned away from Nina, looking down to the water below. For a moment, he did nothing but stare into the deep shadows the moonlight created on the castle walls. He knew it was a trick of his mind, but the shadows seemed to move, to be creeping up the wall towards him.

Flik gathered himself, turned back to Nina, and slowly worked the words out of his mouth. "After I left my village, she was the first person I really looked up to. She had a way of looking at things, one that was broad enough to take in the whole world, yet still had space to care for a wretch like me. She was always teaching me, always challenging me to become a better man than I was." He shook his head. "Maybe, even in her death, she was trying to teach me. How can I forget that? I don't ever, ever want to lose those memories."

He couldn't clearly see Nina's face, but her frown was clear in her tone. "Even if you never see her again? You'll never meet her again. You'll never hold her again."

Her words felt like a slap across his face. The beliefs of Warrior's Village came roaring to the front of his mind and out of his mouth. "I will see her again! She's waiting for me up there." He thrust his hand up towards the sky.

Nina shook her head. "Dead is dead. She's not coming back."

Flik snarled reflexively. "Learn some manners! It's not your business."

Nina put her hands on her hips. "You can't tell me to butt out. I say it's my business."

This time Flik turned his back to try and cut off the conversation. "And I say it is not your business, brat."

Finally Nina's voice rose in anger. "Brat, brat, brat! Is that all you can say? Don't you ever think of anyone else? I spend all of my time thinking about how to make you happy! What good will obsessing over this corpse do for you? All you'll do is make yourself sick with grief!"

"Shut up!" Flik's shout echoed out into the night, down the walls, and over the water. Nina shrank away, coming to rest on the opposite railing. She looked away from him. Embarrassed, Flik did likewise, once again watching the shadows playing along the walls.

"I…I'm sorry," Nina quietly offered.

Flik rubbed his forehead and continued to look away. "Listen…I didn't mean to yell at you like that. I was a fool not to appreciate what I had. I was just a young idiot."

"Won't you forgive me?"

Flik turned back to look at her. He couldn't tell if she was crying. "You're not the one that made me yell, so there's nothing to apologize about." He started walking, not towards her, but for the stairs. "Listen, I'm going to bed. You should, too."

As Flik reached the stairs, Nina extended her hand towards him. She couldn't reach him, but the gesture made him stop. "Flik, I…"

Flik crossed his arms. "What?"

"I still want to remain with you during battle. I want to do whatever I can for you."

"I won't stop you. Perhaps if you wait long enough, your heart will change. Time does that to people. You'll understand soon enough."

Nina shook her head vehemently. "You're wrong, Flik! I'll always want your happiness. My feelings for you won't ever change!"

Flik started down the stairs, but tossed a last comment over his shoulder. "I guess we'll find out." Nina mumbled something behind him, but he didn't hear it. Moments later, he was down in the hallway below. The way was empty and silent, darkness broken by the moonlit windows. He stepped into the first shadow, feeling his way along the wall.

He was nearing the next set of stairs down when he heard a cry off to his right. At first, he thought it might be Nina, but then the corridor shook from an explosion. Flik staggered, trying to get his bearings. There was combat nearby, coming from one of the rooms on this level.

That was when Flik realized there was only one room on this floor. There was a sudden cry of agony and then the light of the Bright Shield Rune started pouring out of the interstices in the stone, flooding the hallway. Flik covered his eyes and shouted for help.


	80. Chapter 80 Specific Objectives

**Chapter 80 – Specific Objectives**

Red afterglow burned in Flik's vision as the light faded. He could hear Nina gasping for breath as she ran towards him. "What's going on, Flik? This is Lord Riou's room, right?"

"Get help!" Flik shouted. "Find Shu or Viktor, quickly!"

The hallway rumbled again. Grit from the ceiling rained down on Flik. Nina stumbled and shrieked, but regained her footing and ran on. Flik could only hope that aid arrived in time. Meanwhile, he had to get to Riou on his own.

He reached for the doorknob and tried to pull the door open. It refused to give. Flik winced as something wooden on the other side splintered. At least, he hoped it was wooden.

"Riou," Flik yelled, "we're coming in!" Maybe the lie would scare the attacker off. Maybe it wouldn't. Flik backed across the corridor, set his shoulder towards the door, and charged.

He whacked hard into the wooden door, nearly separated his shoulder, and staggered back in pain. He shook his head and remembered that he had a rune. Holding up his right hand, he called several bolts of lightning. The roars of impact drowned out the fighting on the other side of the wall, but when the smoke cleared, the only change in the door was several scorch marks. Flik sighed and set his other shoulder towards the door. He was just about to fling himself forward when a hand reached out to stop him.

"Let me handle this," Viktor said. He looked surprisingly sober for a man who'd come from a drinking contest. Behind him was Tsai with a spear gripped in both hands. "Be ready to follow me in," Viktor added, starting forward. "Here we go!"

Viktor hit the door with a big whoosh of escaping air. The frame splintered, but didn't fall open. On the other hand, Viktor didn't fall back either, but continued to strain. "Give me a push!" he ordered.

Flik and Tsai shoved hard on Viktor's back. The hinges on the door groaned and then exploded off the wall. Viktor fell forward into Riou's room, landing on his stomach with a grunt. Flik leapt over his friend and drew his sword, searching for the assailant.

The interior of Riou's room was a smoky mess, with charred furniture tossed seemingly at random. Flik brushed aside the smoldering ruins of a curtain and called out for Riou. Something moved at the far end of the room, visible in the moonlight coming from an open window. Flik caught a glimpse of a feminine form, blonde hair, tanned skin, and a white outfit before the figure jumped up onto the sill and disappeared out into the night.

Flik and Tsai sprinted towards the window, though Tsai peeled off at the last second, heading for the remains of Riou's bed. Flik got to the window and found a grapple embedded in the stone. Looking out, he could see the figure rapidly climbing down a rope. "Stop where you are, or I'll cut the rope!" Flik yelled. He tugged up on the rope for emphasis.

"Let her go."

Flik turned around. Riou was up, supported by Tsai. He had his tonfa in hand and was wearing a pale blue night robe. The robe had been slashed open in several places and was splattered with blood.

"She tried to kill you," Flik argued. "We can't let her leave!" He looked back out the window, just in time to see her leap off the rope, diving towards the harbor below. Flik stared in disbelief as she avoided the rocks and splashed safely into the water. He stuck his head all the way out and shouted down towards the lights of the distant dock patrol. "In the water! Don't let her escape!"

That had just the opposite effect that Flik wanted. The patrolmen heard his voice, but not his words. He could see them looking up at the tower, pointing their pole lamps in his direction. "Not up here!" Flik yelled. "In the water, in the water!" He jabbed down dramatically with his sword.

"Brother!" Flik pulled his head back inside so that he could see Nanami neatly step around Viktor and rush towards her brother. She reached Riou and grabbed his left arm, where the sleeve of his robe had been burned back. She was fresh from one of her nightly training sessions, her face plastered with sweat and concern. "Are you okay? Do you need me to heal you?"

"I can heal myself," Riou answered. He didn't try to push her away, though.

Voices were rising in the hallway as a crowd gathered. Flik saw that Viktor was having some difficulty getting up, so he walked over to lend a hand. "Damn, I thought being drunk would dull the pain," Viktor muttered.

As Viktor straightened up, Shu entered the room, walking calmly but briskly towards Riou. Eilie entered behind him, but was fast enough to get to Riou first. Shu exhaled sharply and shot a glance at Viktor and Flik. "Don't let anyone else into this room."

Viktor grunted but walked towards the door, where Rina and Bolgan stood at the head of the crowd. With a few words to the large performer, the two men blocked the way. Flik could hear Rina trying to calm the people on the other side. At the same time, Riou was describing the attack to Shu.

"She said the war would only end when I was dead."

Nanami was blinking her eyes as though she were about to cry. "This is my fault. I should've been up here to protect you."

Shu's tone was all business. "We cannot afford such laxity." He walked over to the window and examined the grapple. "Security will have to be tightened, Lord Riou." Finished with the grapple, he turned to address Flik. "Did you see the attacker? I'd like to hear how your impression of her compares with Tsai's and Riou's."

"She moved like a trained warrior," Flik replied.

"That doesn't help me," Shu interrupted, looking annoyed. "Did she have any distinguishing features? Was she wearing anything in her hair? Did she have any markings on her skin?"

"Skin," Flik mumbled, making Shu stop and wait expectantly. "I'm not sure, because of the light, but her skin seemed…darker than mine, darker than anyone in this room's." He glanced to Riou and Tsai and saw the two of them nod in confirmation. "The combination of her blonde hair and dark skin was very striking."

"She was Karayan?"

All eyes in the room turned to Eilie, who'd blurted out the question. She blushed a little, holding Riou's left hand, but continued, "I mean, that's what it sounds like you're describing. I'm from the Safir Clan, and I've seen that combination of hair and skin many times on the Grasslands. The person you're describing has to be Karayan."

That sounded right to Flik. He and Viktor had traveled the Grasslands once before, a long time ago. The woman he'd seen tonight fit in with the memories of Karayans he'd seen in the past.

"Why would a Karayan want to kill Lord Riou?" Tsai asked, squinting out the window.

"I think that's enough conversation for one night," Shu said. "The important thing is that Lord Riou is safe. I'll have the dock patrol scour the waters of the harbor. Maybe they'll bring her back alive, or find her corpse. Meanwhile, Lord Riou, I'll have to ask you to move to another room, at least until this one can be secured to my satisfaction."

"Don't worry, brother, I'll stand guard over you all night!" Nanami added.

Riou wiped at a smudge on his face while regarding the ruins of his room. He looked remarkably unruffled about surviving an assassination attempt. "I guess I will have to sleep somewhere else." He nodded to Shu. "Let's go."

The crowd gave a hearty cheer when they caught sight of Riou. He waved back to them, then let Viktor and Bolgan clear a path forward. Nanami, Eilie, and Shu followed after him. Flik remained behind, watching as Tsai pulled up the rope from the window.

"This isn't a good sign," the spearsmith said gravely. "I fear that this war is about to enter a much more difficult phase."

Once Tsai was gone, Flik didn't linger. A pair of guards was already in position as he stepped out into the hallway and closed the door behind him. That seemed a bit silly, given that Riou wasn't there anymore. Besides the two men, there was no one else in sight. Now that the crisis was over, Flik suddenly felt very tired. He made his way back to his room and collapsed into bed. As he drifted off to sleep, he was vaguely aware of the purring coming from just above his head on the pillow.

Flik slept fitfully. Part of it was that his shoulder started to throb in pain. Part of it was that the cat wanted to leave. Yawning, Flik got up, shambled over to the door, and let the cat out, closing the door afterwards. Then he shambled back into bed. After what felt like a quarter hour, he could hear the cat meowing, wanting to be let back in. This time, Flik left the door ajar, so the cat could come and go as it wanted. The rest of his sleep was undisturbed.

That is, until he felt something lightly bonking him on the nose. He could hear birds singing and, though his eyes were closed, he could tell that it was morning. Something bumped his nose again, and Flik could hear the cat purring. He opened his eyes and found himself face to face with a mouse.

It didn't matter that it was a very dead mouse, held by the jaws of the tabby cat. Flik did the only thing that any sane person would do in that situation, he yelled and tried to swat the thing away. The mouse flew across the room and hit the far wall with a splat and slid down into a heap at the floor. The cat hissed, bounded off the bed, and zoomed out the door. Flik, tangled in his blankets, overbalanced and toppled onto the floor.

By the time he freed himself, he was chuckling. Getting up, he said, "I ought to call that cat 'Trouble,' since that's what he makes for me." He grabbed the mouse by the tail and absentmindedly flung it out the window. With that concern out of mind, Flik started to get into his equipment. He'd just finished with his leather armor when the screaming started from outside.

Frowning, Flik walked over and stuck his head out the window. About twenty feet below was a carefully cultivated garden filled with colorful flowers and sculpted topiary. Though Flik didn't spend much time there, he knew that the more refined residents of the castle preferred this place. In the center of the garden was an ornate table, occupied at the moment by the two nobles from Toran, Simone Verdricci and Vincent De Boule.

The mouse had flown through the air in a perfect arc and landed face first into Simone's teacup, causing the unfortunate noble to faint out of his chair. Vincent had rushed to his side and was doing his best to try and revive his friend, frantically waving a bottle of smelling salts under his nose. Flik managed to clamp down on his mouth and pull his head back inside before he started laughing aloud. It was a good way to start the day.

An hour later, as he stood in the great hall with the other freshly minted generals, he wasn't so sure. It wasn't that he was regretting his decision to accept the commission, but that he was certain the number of meetings he would have to endure was going to go up dramatically.

"Do the Karayans have any particular grievance with Jowston?" Apple was asking.

Lady Teresa frowned. "The people of Greenhill have always had a tense relationship with our neighbors to the north, but I don't see any reason for their intervention now. My father negotiated a border agreement with them only two years ago."

"It could be that they're trying to take advantage of the current war to make their own gains on the border," Klaus suggested.

"That doesn't sound right," Riou said. "The one who attacked me said she wanted to end the war, not expand it." He showed no signs from the assassination attempt, though Nanami at his side looked tense.

"Diplomacy with the Karayans can be difficult," Fitcher added. "They might've already considered themselves at war with us for reasons that we would find incomprehensible. Perhaps they no longer feel bound by the treaty because Highland controls the province."

Kiba shook his head. "Why attack Riou, then? I personally think that Leon Silverberg must've bribed them to join the war, probably to hinder our efforts at retaking Greenhill."

"Bah, it's not like they can stop us," Viktor groused. "They aren't known for fielding large armies. What do they add to the Highland side? Maybe a thousand warriors, two thousand at most."

"You have not fought them recently," Hauser admonished, crossing his arms. "Fighting one's way out of a Karayan ambush is not a pleasant experience."

During the whole discussion, Flik had been watching Shu. The strategist's face usually revealed little, but Flik had learned to read some signs. Shu's mouth had tightened just a bit when Lady Teresa talked about her father's negotiations. There was something important that had happened there that the strategist knew about, but wasn't likely to share, at least not at the moment.

"My point is that we shouldn't call off the attack because we're worried about a few thousand Karayans," Viktor argued.

Shu's head twitched in the smallest of nods before he cleared his throat. "I think we can all agree with General Viktor's sentiment." While no one objected, Hauser continued to look concerned. "Very good. Now, let's go over the particulars of the plan. The number of Highland soldiers within the province is small, but there is the threat of reinforcement from Muse. Therefore, our objective must be twofold. First, we must secure the border between Greenhill and Muse as quickly as possible. Second, we must take Greenhill City itself. If we can do this, the liberation of the province will be a matter of course."

"We're going to split the army?" Flik asked.

"There are times when broad strategic precepts must be violated in order to achieve specific objectives. This is one of those situations." Shu's attention turned fully to Flik. "We must act quickly and decisively, General Flik. I'm giving you the responsibility of opening the campaign."

Flik took the news in stride, speaking his thoughts aloud. "You want me to seize the Muse-Greenhill border."

"That is only partially correct." Shu smiled, momentarily sounding like a teacher and not a strategist. "You will also need to establish a cordon around the exit to Greenhill City. I need Yuber's army held in place."

"As we discussed yesterday, we're giving you all of the cavalry," Apple added. "That would be the Red and Blue Knights of Matilda, the Maximillian Knights from Toran, assorted cavalry companies from Muse and Highland, and finally your men, the scouts. It comes to nearly five thousand men total. Camus, Miklotov, and Max are all at your service, and Pesmerga has agreed to accept a commission as a captain of cavalry. We have no complaint with Rossgard commanding your former men and Kuno will remain in charge of your staff."

Flik let all the information flow over him, trying to pick out the essentials. He knew Camus and Miklotov well enough, knew that they would work with him. He respected Max and remembered the knight's work during the Liberation War. Flik figured he'd be able to work with him. Pesmerga was a mystery. Flik couldn't imagine the dark knight taking orders from anyone, but Tir had managed it somehow two years ago.

Plans started forming in Flik's head. A couple of days of joint maneuvers would help him work out the kinks and get him used to their personalities. With each passing moment, he could feel his confidence growing. He would make this work out.

Then Shu said, "You will begin embarking tomorrow morning. I want you to establish your command in Two Rivers no later than the day after. I expect you to have achieved your two goals within three days of establishing your base." He paused, perhaps waiting for some sign of acknowledgement. However, when Flik opened his mouth to ask a question, Shu started up again. "I have already told Amada and Tai Ho to put their ships at your disposal. The harbormaster knows that loading your men is the highest priority. After you have landed, the rest of the New State Army will arrive behind you. Therefore, speed is of the essence. Do you understand?"

All Flik could do was nod in response, his mouth still slightly open.

"Very good. You are dismissed from the remainder of this briefing. I suggest you use this time to meet with your new subordinates. You have a lot to do in a very limited timeframe." With that Shu turned away from Flik and started speaking to the others. Flik stood in his spot for a few moments, though, trying to recover his bearings. Only Nanami was watching as he shook his head, bowed, and walked quickly from the room. She had a sympathetic smile on her face.

The urgency in Shu's tone goaded Flik on. He took the stairs several at a time and was jogging as he crossed the entrance hall. Outside he ignored the late summer heat and held his pace on the city streets, weaving his way around wagons and bystanders, until he arrived at his own barracks. He sprinted across the mustering ground and burst through the doors of the command building, panting heavily.

"Get me some messengers!" He stopped and gulped down a few breaths of air. He could hardly hold up his own head, he was so exhausted. "We've got a lot to do!"

"Is something the matter, General Flik?"

Flik glanced up to find Camus walking towards him. To his surprise, the other generals that Shu had mentioned were also in the room, all looking his way. Kuno was also waiting, holding a tray with a drink on it. "I believe the general is just a little winded from the meeting with Lord Riou. Would you care for something cold to refresh yourself?"

By reflex, Flik took the glass and started drinking, using the opportunity to collect his thoughts. The fact that all of his sub-commanders were already gathered showed that Kuno, and by extension Shu, had planned things out long in advance. It irked Flik a little that he couldn't keep ahead of their strategy. He set the empty glass down on the tray, ignored the headache between his eyes, and smiled in greeting.

"As I was saying, even though we've got a lot to do, I wanted to take this time to thank each of you and welcome you to my service."

"I think I can speak for all when I say that I am honored to serve under you, General Flik," Miklotov said, bowing formally. Camus, Max, and Rossgard all bowed likewise. Pesmerga gave a simple nod of his head.

Flik forced himself not to let out a relieved sigh. "Well then, for the sake of time, let's set formality aside. I trust that Kuno has briefed you on the situation."

It was Kuno himself who answered the question. "We have discussed the planned invasion of Greenhill in your absence. Your captains are aware of their responsibilities."

"I see." Flik hoped his eyes weren't wide in surprise. "Are there any questions or concerns? I'd rather hear them now than in the middle of the campaign."

"This plan's going to have us all strung out if we're not careful," Rossgard commented. "Where will you be, sir, if we need to communicate with you?"

"I intend to take to the field and not remain behind in Two Rivers." Flik's mind worked, trying to figure out something smart to say about a plan he hadn't even seen yet. "I'll alternate between the units and send messengers to stay in contact. I grant you the authority to command your men as you see fit, as long as you stay within the parameters of the plan."

"Does that include authority to initiate combat?" Max asked, his eyes eager.

"I'm hoping that major combat will not be a factor, at least until we reach our objectives. The goal here is to move swiftly, not get drawn into set battles. If your units meet resistance that can't be swept aside, fall back and make contact with me."

There were no further questions, so Flik dismissed the captains, telling them to be ready the following morning. Once the office was clear except for Kuno, he turned to the aide and quipped, "You seem to have anticipated the situation. Care to show me the plan you've drawn up?"

Kuno spread a map on the table before answering, "I hope I haven't caused any offense. It just seemed logical that Greenhill would be our next target, so I drafted a plan."

Flik regarded the arrows on the parchment with amazement. "But I haven't even told you what Shu expects of us. How'd you know that he wants us to occupy the border there?" He pointed to the road leading to Muse.

Kuno shrugged. "Simple logical deduction. The bulk of the enemy army lies to the east. Who else would you send to interdict their movement but the cavalry?" He coughed discretely. "Did the Lord Strategist give us any further goals? Did he mention anything that might change the situation? If need be, we should adjust the plan now."

Gathering himself, Flik thought back to the briefing and looked at the map more closely. "Yes, we also need to hold the defenders of Greenhill in place."

"That seems doable," Kuno said. "Control the intersection here." He pointed to the south of the city. "At least until the main army moves up." He thought for another moment. "I'll have to draw up a schedule for your movement among the men."

Flik stifled a laugh, earning him a confused look from the aide. "Where did Shu find you? You seem to be able to lead my men better than I can. Perhaps I should just stand aside and let you lead them into battle?" He added the last part jokingly.

Kuno, however, shook his head vehemently. "That I cannot do. I have no skill in battle, General Flik. The Lord Strategist picked us to complement each other. I can manage your men and marches, but you must judge the battlefield."

Flik extended his hand towards Kuno. "I can live with that arrangement. You make sure my men get where they need to go, I'll do the fighting when we get there, and together we'll send the Highland Army packing!"

Kuno accepted Flik's hand, smiling slightly. "Let us hope that it goes so simply, General Flik."


End file.
